Charles Leclerc feels Ferrari’s recurring drop from strong practice pace to weaker qualifying performance can partly be explained by the engine modes used by its Formula 1 rivals. The Scuderia has frequently appeared highly competitive during FP1 and FP2 in 2026, only for the picture to change once qualifying begins, and Leclerc suspects other teams are able to unlock something Ferrari currently does not have.
The contrast has become one of the clearest patterns of Ferrari’s season. Lewis Hamilton and his Maranello teammate have repeatedly featured near the top of the practice timesheets, yet the team remains without a pole position after the opening 16 rounds of the campaign.
Ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix at Marina Bay, Ferrari’s practice record is particularly striking. Leclerc has topped FP1 five times and FP2 once, while Hamilton has led one FP1 session and two FP2 sessions. The team has also recorded three FP1 one-twos and two FP2 one-twos.
Despite those results, neither driver has started from pole. Both have reached second on the grid three times, but Ferrari has still been unable to turn its Friday pace into the outright qualifying benchmark.
Charles Leclerc believes rival engine modes help explain the gap
Leclerc does not believe Ferrari’s Friday performances necessarily mean the SF-26 is genuinely the fastest car at those points of the weekend. His view is that rivals may simply be using different Power Unit settings during practice before accessing more performance when qualifying begins.
The Monegasque explained that Ferrari can look slightly more competitive in FP1 because rival teams appear to have additional performance available for the decisive session. Once qualifying starts, he believes those cars can produce something the Scuderia currently lacks.
That assessment fits Ferrari’s repeated pattern in 2026. Strong practice sessions have frequently created expectations that the team might fight for pole, only for the competitive order to shift once the field moves into qualifying trim.
Hamilton’s own comments about Ferrari’s underlying power disadvantage have also reinforced the wider debate around the SF-26. The seven-time world champion has previously acknowledged that Ferrari still carries a Power Unit deficit despite its technical innovations, a weakness that can become particularly relevant when maximum performance is demanded over a single lap.
Ferrari has still produced strong qualifying results without taking pole
Although Ferrari remains without a pole position, both drivers have come close. Charles Leclerc qualified second in Austria, Britain and Azerbaijan, while Lewis Hamilton reached P2 in Barcelona, Hungary and the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia.
Hamilton’s Hungary result was later affected by a grid penalty for impeding, but the underlying qualifying performance still demonstrated that the SF-26 has been capable of reaching the front row.
The frustration is therefore less about Ferrari being completely uncompetitive and more about the final step required to become the fastest car over one lap. Practice pace has repeatedly suggested that possibility, but qualifying has exposed the gap.
Why Formula 1 teams use different Power Unit settings in practice
Running a Power Unit less aggressively in free practice is common in Formula 1. Teams can reduce unnecessary stress on engine components before increasing performance for qualifying and the race.
However, not every team approaches practice in exactly the same way. Some Ferrari rivals, including McLaren, do not always favour running significantly lower Power Unit modes during practice because using a more representative setting can help with race preparation.
Formula 1 regulations also require teams to use the same engine mode during qualifying and the race. As a result, the main advantage of running a less powerful mode during practice is preserving engine mileage rather than creating an additional qualifying-only setting that can then be changed again for Sunday.
That consideration becomes increasingly important later in the season when teams approach their allocation limits and want to avoid grid penalties for introducing additional Power Unit components.
Ferrari’s engine allocation adds another layer to the Singapore challenge
Both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc are already at the limit of their penalty-free engine-component allocations. Any further changes would therefore require a grid penalty, increasing the importance of managing mileage carefully across the remaining races.
The issue is not unique to Ferrari. Andrea Kimi Antonelli took a back-of-the-grid penalty at Monza after adding a new engine to his pool, while George Russell is set to start the Singapore Grand Prix from the rear after his retirement at Sepang led Mercedes to introduce another unit.
For Ferrari, however, the situation adds another complication to a weekend already shaped by the Sprint format. With only one practice session before competitive running begins, the team has less opportunity to assess the car before committing to qualifying conditions.
Fred Vasseur has already outlined Ferrari’s key Singapore Sprint challenge, where preparation and arriving with a strong baseline will matter more than usual.
Ferrari sees one important advantage in the Singapore Sprint format
Leclerc nevertheless believes Ferrari has one strength that could become valuable at Marina Bay. The team has generally been able to begin race weekends with a well-balanced car, reducing the amount of set-up work required during the opening sessions.
That characteristic becomes especially useful during a Sprint weekend, when teams have much less time to make major changes before qualifying. Ferrari may therefore benefit from its ability to arrive with the SF-26 already operating in a reasonable window.
The challenge is whether that preparation can survive the transition from practice to qualifying. Marina Bay could suit several characteristics of the car, and Hamilton also enters the weekend with reasons for optimism about Ferrari’s Singapore prospects, but Ferrari still needs to prove it can maintain its relative competitiveness once rivals access their full performance.
Singapore will test whether Ferrari’s Friday pace is truly representative
The opening practice session at Marina Bay may once again show Ferrari near the front, but Leclerc’s assessment suggests that result should be interpreted carefully. The real comparison will come when qualifying begins and every team moves closer to its maximum available performance.
That is the point at which Ferrari has repeatedly lost some of the advantage visible earlier in the weekend. The SF-26 can be well balanced from the first laps and still face a deficit when rivals increase their performance for qualifying.
For Leclerc and Hamilton, Singapore therefore becomes another opportunity to test whether Ferrari has closed that gap or whether the same pattern will continue: promising practice pace, followed by rivals finding something extra when it matters most.
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