Lewis Hamilton completed 85 laps on a dry track in Barcelona today, marking the first “real” test of Ferrari’s SF-26 after its wet-weather debut on Tuesday. It was an important milestone for the British driver, as the Scuderia ran without any issues, allowing the focus to shift more towards long runs and understanding how the new power unit operates.
Due to the rain that fell in Barcelona on Tuesday, Ferrari’s first day of testing, Lewis Hamilton had not yet had a genuine opportunity to properly experience the SF-26 in dry conditions, aside from just a handful of laps during the Fiorano shakedown. That is precisely why the 85 laps completed this morning are so valuable in the learning process of Ferrari’s new car, both for the driver and for the engineers working trackside and back at the factory.
It is a tally that offers encouragement at least from a reliability perspective, achieved without any major setbacks. This is especially significant considering that all 85 laps were completed during the morning session alone, before Lewis Hamilton handed the car over to his team-mate Charles Leclerc for the afternoon. The two Ferrari drivers will alternate once again tomorrow, the final day of the Barcelona test.
Reflecting on his session, the seven-time world champion highlighted how running on a dry track finally gave him the chance to properly get to know the car. For many teams at this stage, the priority is not so much about proving reliability, but rather beginning work on aerodynamic mapping and power unit calibration, comparing data generated in the simulator with what is seen on track.
With low temperatures — at times dropping below 5°C ambient — getting the tyres to work has not been particularly straightforward. During the early hours of the morning, Lewis Hamilton even suffered a small spin at the start of the third sector after losing the rear of the car, fortunately without any significant consequences.
“It was nice to finally be able to run on a dry track and do some proper work, because the first day was in terrible rain. And it was useful to go out and see what things are like: at Fiorano I only did one lap, maybe two, just to get a feel for the car,” the British driver said after his run.
“So it was great to be able to complete some runs and understand the tyres. We used the C2 and the C1: in this cold the tyres don’t really work very well, but we completed the programme and we have an idea of where the car is and where we need to improve.”
Ferrari therefore already has an initial reference point on where to focus development work, especially as this early phase is all about familiarisation. The team had already made it clear that the version of the SF-26 seen in Barcelona would be a more ‘basic’ specification, with further updates expected during the Bahrain tests and the opening races of the season.
The aspect that made Lewis Hamilton smile the most was undoubtedly reliability. Completing 85 laps without any major issues is a strong return, particularly when considering that Mercedes has also continued to rack up mileage, with the Brackley-based team admitting it is even further ahead of schedule than expected.
For this reason, Lewis Hamilton wanted to acknowledge the work carried out at the factory ahead of one of the biggest regulatory revolutions in Formula 1. He looked back to twelve months ago, when the feelings coming out of the Sakhir tests were far from positive, partly due to an issue during one of the three days that limited his ability to complete long runs.
“When you come to testing, you always want to do lots of laps: this morning I did 85, which is incredible. And that really is down to everyone at the factory who did an amazing job to make sure the car has been really reliable so far,” he said.
“Last year we started testing in a much worse place. So, considering there’s a completely new set of regulations, this is actually a better start than in the past. And I’m really confident that it can continue like this.”
The focus now is on continuing to accumulate as many kilometres as possible, particularly by working on engine mapping, in order to understand how best to deploy energy over a lap and analyse different scenarios. This involves constantly comparing data generated in the simulator and on the computers at the factory with what is observed on track. Lewis Hamilton explained that some interesting elements had already emerged from the morning’s running.
“For us it’s about continuing to try to do more laps and gain as much knowledge as possible about this engine, the car and the aerodynamic side. So there’s a lot of work to do. This morning we followed a programme and found some interesting things; Charles did something different in the afternoon, which is great. So yes, my role is to listen as much as possible,” Lewis Hamilton explained.
“At the end of the day we sit down, put together the issues, the positives and negatives, and then define a plan for what we want to tackle tomorrow, which is our final day. But already now we have good data. It’s just about understanding it properly and making sure we take really clear and precise decisions on what to test going forward, before we get to Bahrain.” – the British driver concluded.
Ferrari’s progress in Barcelona suggests that the SF-26 has successfully moved from the drawing board to a reliable on-track reality. While the competitive order won’t be clear until the desert heat of Sakhir, the sheer volume of trouble-free laps completed by Lewis Hamilton today provides a promising summary of a team that has learned from its past mistakes and is hitting its initial targets for the 2026 era.
Leave a Reply