Video – Ferrari SF-26 shakedown: first laps at Fiorano with Lewis Hamilton. Ferrari’s SF-26 completes its first shakedown at Fiorano.

Ferrari shakedown: the SF-26 immediately on track with Hamilton at the wheel

Almost simultaneously with the presentation and the images released through the team’s social media channels, the Ferrari SF-26 took to the track for the first time. The car was already prepared in the Fiorano garage, ready to cover its first kilometres. Making its on-track debut was Lewis Hamilton, who, after completing a couple of laps, will then hand over driving duties to Charles Leclerc.

In recent years, Ferrari has returned to showing its single-seaters to the fans gathered on the Fiorano bridge through these demonstration-style events. Today’s run is not a filming day, but a simple shakedown with 15 kilometres available for the drivers, which roughly equates to just over two laps each. Nothing that is useful from a performance point of view, but potentially crucial moments for gathering first impressions and avoiding early reliability issues.

The Ferrari SF-26 therefore made its absolute debut in a typically wintery Maranello, with light fog and a touch of rain. It marks the dawn of a new era for Formula 1, and there is hope that it will also signal the return of the Prancing Horse to the very top of the category, after years marked by frustration, change, missed objectives and dashed expectations. Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton are aiming for the title, while Frédéric Vasseur is playing his hand with a team built very much in his own image. Now, however, is not the time for predictions or forecasts: one of the most unpredictable seasons in the history of Formula 1 is beginning.