Barcelona was supposed to be a turning point race for Ferrari’s revival in the 2025 Formula 1 World Championship. The Spanish Grand Prix, although bringing the Italian side back to second place in the Constructors’ standings — more due to rivals’ shortcomings than Maranello’s merit — proved that the expected leap in quality never happened. And Lewis Hamilton advises focusing on next year’s championship.
Looking at the championship standings reveals a paradox: Ferrari is second in the Constructors’ Championship, having overtaken Mercedes by six points and Red Bull by 21, while Charles Leclerc is only fifth in the Drivers’ standings, 17 points behind George Russell ahead of him and a full 43 points behind Max Verstappen, who is third. Lewis Hamilton is sixth, 23 points adrift of his teammate.
The picture from the Spanish GP presents unusual hues: the Maranello team capitalizes on the placements of both its drivers, who are consistently scoring points, while Mercedes (due to engine reliability issues on Kimi Antonelli’s car) and Red Bull (due to Yuki Tsunoda’s slump) each brought only one car into the Top 10.
If we looked only at the numbers, Ferrari’s staff might feel satisfied, since the double overtake restores the Italian side’s position as McLaren’s (unreachable) pursuer. But when the analysis shifts from the sporting to the technical perspective, the tone changes. Dramatically.
The weekend at the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona was supposed to be the event that would reshuffle the pecking order: the introduction of new FIA checks on wing flexibility was expected to bring the SF-25 closer to the papaya-colored cars. The result, however, was crystal clear: McLaren, which acted in advance, debuted the supposedly stiffer wing already in Imola (as did Mercedes and Alpine), and in Spain they did not even declare any updates, essentially maintaining the same three-to-four tenths advantage they’ve held since the start of the season — despite Ferrari bringing a completely new wing, with both different flexibility values and a design aimed at improving performance.
The expected leap forward didn’t materialize. It was a complete no-show. Charles Leclerc had sacrificed qualifying (with only one Q3 run), hoping to capitalize during the race with two fresh sets of mediums, while rivals would have had to use, regardless of compound, four already-used tyres. But that strategy also proved ineffective: without a safety car, Charles Leclerc would have finished behind Max Verstappen. The Monegasque, always very honest, admitted he got the choice wrong. So the idea failed: this is a Formula 1 competition that prioritizes track position, and sacrificing Saturday potential in the hope of a Sunday comeback ultimately doesn’t pay off, as Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur had even hoped McLaren could be challenged.
In Canada, after a week to reflect on the direction to take, one of the bridging races toward the introduction of the new floor and the much-hyped rear suspension should take place. Fred Vasseur expressed caution about raising expectations too much, stating that while Ferrari would continue pushing development, they preferred not to make any declarations. He explained that some updates are visible and must be disclosed, while others remain unseen and do not require any announcement.
It is a way of shuffling the deck that does not benefit Ferrari. And as the moment to introduce the upgrades nears, the hope that they will be impactful enough to change Ferrari’s season seems to dwindle. Even within the racing department, the SF-25 is being labeled a flawed car, and while corrections may improve the situation, they won’t reverse it.
The car, thanks to its new layout, was supposed to unlock great development potential. But the facts show that aerodynamic evolution is progressing slowly and with little clarity. So much so that senior management, after Imola, had called for an acceleration in updates, believing them to be key steps toward Ferrari’s resurgence. Now, that confidence seems to be fading. Is this just another smokescreen, or is there growing awareness that this just isn’t Ferrari’s year?
Lewis Hamilton seemed highly critical: the seven-time world champion has repeatedly said he doesn’t expect any changes capable of altering the course of the season, suggesting it might be better to direct all human and financial resources toward next year’s car.
The Briton, after an initial infatuation with Ferrari, now seems disillusioned: the fact that Lewis is the first to steer Ferrari toward the 2026 Formula 1 project, without wasting more time on a car that’s failing to meet expectations, supports the view that only Frederic Vasseur still believes in the SF-25’s potential — driven by his incurable optimism.
We are now more than a third of the way through the season, and decision time is fast approaching: Barcelona was meant to be a turning point. McLaren are only visible through binoculars, while the race for second with everyone else remains wide open. Updates already planned and in development will arrive — but is it still worth investing in a car like the SF-25, whose limits have already been exposed?
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