After Tuesday’s test session was slowed down by rain, conditions eased at Mugello, allowing teams and Pirelli to complete part of the scheduled testing program for both 2025 and 2026. On Tuesday, Red Bull had fielded Liam Lawson to help finalize next year’s compounds, while McLaren took to the track with Lando Norris driving a mule car to test 2026 tires. These remain the same as the current generation in using an 18” wheel, but with slightly reduced width and external diameter, both on the front and rear axles.
Along with McLaren and Red Bull, who confirmed the same drivers as the previous day, a third team joined the action on Wednesday: Ferrari, with Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz behind the wheel of the SF-24, testing tires for next year.
For all four drivers, this test session was extremely useful to stay in practice ahead of the return to the track in Austin in two weeks, following the long break after Singapore. For Lawson, driving the Red Bull was an excellent opportunity to gain mileage with a top-tier car before his debut in the United States Gran Prix, where he will replace Daniel Ricciardo at Racing Bulls, following the Australian’s withdrawal after the last race in Marina Bay.
As with the previous day, Pirelli engineers worked on two parallel programs on Wednesday: Red Bull and Ferrari focused on developing the 2025 compounds, particularly the harder tires planned for next season, while McLaren, which brought a mule car to Mugello, concentrated on initial tests of the 2026 tire prototypes.
Having already homologated the construction of the 2025 tires, Pirelli is now finalizing the details of the compounds for next year. Mugello offers an ideal opportunity to test the durability of the harder compounds, given the track’s long curves that place significant energy and stress on the tires.
The first hour of activity this morning took place on a still-damp track, meaning all three cars ran on intermediate tires, still gathering useful data, especially on a challenging circuit like Mugello. By 11 a.m., conditions allowed the switch to slick tires to attempt completing the entire scheduled program.
By the end of the day, a total of 390 laps had been completed. The most active driver on track was Lando Norris, who completed 118 laps, with a best time of 1’21’’302, followed by Liam Lawson with 116 laps and a best lap of 1’23’’219. The two Ferrari drivers shared the day: Carlos Sainz drove in the morning, completing 79 laps, while Charles Leclerc took over in the afternoon, putting together 77 laps.
The next stages of the two development programs will take place in very different contexts. For the 2025 tires, during the Mexican Grand Prix weekend, teams will be given an extra half-hour in FP2 to test the softer compounds for next year. While the hardest compounds were tested at Mugello, on a less demanding track like Mexico, Pirelli will be able to test softer prototypes, this time with all ten teams participating. As for the 2026 tire development, the next session is scheduled for November 13-14 at Magny-Cours, where Alpine will run their mule car.
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