What's going right for Ferrari at Bahrain testing

On Wednesday, Charles Leclerc completed 70 laps and topped the timing charts with a 1:33.739 in the morning session - 0.313 seconds ahead of Lando Norris.

While Lewis Hamilton’s running was disrupted in the afternoon by a “minor issue,” the Briton explained to media why he feels “more connected” to Ferrari’s 2026 challenger.

More so now than ever before, the most important test in pre-season is reliability, and Ferrari have passed with flying colours so far.

Lewis Hamilton’s Wednesday afternoon running was disrupted after 24 laps, but the seven-time world champion returned to the track in a SF-26 covered in flo-vis to complete a final 40 minutes of smooth running.

During Test 1 last week, only the Mercedes-powered McLaren and Williams covered more ground and that was by one single lap. Across their 421 laps, Leclerc said Ferrari “didn't have any reliability issues” while Vasseur said it was "mega good” that the team have gone under the radar during pre-season.

The Italian team have even delivered upgrades to their ‘spec A’ SF-26 across Bahrain testing, and judging by the timing charts, they seem to be working.

Leclerc caught the paddock’s attention by going quickest on Day 2, while Hamilton went even faster on Day 3 with a 1:34.209, and finished the test 3rd overall behind the two Mercedes drivers.

As ever, we take one-off lap times with a pinch of salt, but McLaren team principal Andrea Stella also highlighted both Hamilton and Leclerc’s strong race simulations, claiming Ferrari are "at the top of the list" with Mercedes on performance.

“I think Antonelli and Hamilton were quicker than us in the race simulation. Still, I would say that Charles [Leclerc’s] one was quite competitive and at the same level,” Stella said to the media, including GPblog.

“I invite everyone to just be careful looking too much into what we see in testing. However, early indications from a competitiveness point of view, I think you can definitely put Ferrari and Mercedes at the top of the list.”

In 2025, both drivers were forced to adapt their driving styles for a fundamentally flawed SF-25, and while Hamilton has gripes with the “ridiculously complex” challenge of energy management in 2026, he has arguably already been more positive towards a “snappy,” “sliding” and ultimately “more fun” generation of cars than he ever was about the post-2021 ground effect era.

Speaking to the media, including GPblog, on Day 1 of Bahrain Test 2, Hamilton was also pleased with his level of input in shaping the SF-26.

“Last year we were locked into a car that ultimately I inherited,” Hamilton said.

“This is a car that I’ve been able to be a part of developing on the simulator for the last 10 months.

As for Leclerc, he too has admitted challenges with the 2026 cars, but is so far hesitant to match Max Verstappen’s “anti-racing” attack on the new regulations, instead arguing there’s fun to be had in thinking "outside the box" to try and maximise performance.

Whether or not Ferrari will be able to do just that in 2026 is still up for debate, but the Tifosi have every reason to be excited as we enter the final two days of pre-season testing.

Speaking to GPblog and other media on Wednesday, Hamilton opened up on his mindset heading into 2026 after a difficult debut season with Ferrari.