Hamilton and Ferrari uncover 'good' Abu Dhabi 'findings'

Though the last round of the F1 2025 championship was ran this past Sunday, where Lando Norris clinched the Drivers' title ahead of Max Verstappen, one final committment remained in the teams' schedule: Pirelli's post-season test at Abu Dhabi, where the F1 2026 tyre compounds would be put to use for the last time this year.

Having completed the programme which Pirelli regulated completely, enforcing a 300 kph limit and instructing teams to reduce down force levels to replicate 2026 racing conditions as best as possible, Charles Leclerc was positive after the session that saw him place P14 at the end.

"It was a very positive test day," Leclerc said. "We had a lot of things to try and it was fundamental to work on the tyres to start understanding them. Everything we learned will go with us into next year.

"It’s the last day of this season, but at the same time the first of the next. Thank you so much to everyone for the support you gave me this year. See you next year!," Leclerc concluded.

His teammate, Lewis Hamilton, also reacted favourably after Tuesday's running. "We tested the new tyres today to help us gain a better understanding of how they will perform," he said.

"I’m really grateful to everyone in the garage for pushing through this extra day of testing, which is not easy at the end of a long season," the seven-time world champion ended his view of the session where he placed P11.

Dino Beganovic, a Scuderia Ferrari Drivers' Academy in-house talent also took part in the test where he led Leclerc and Hamilton finishing in P9.

"I had a very good day in Abu Dhabi," he said. "It was really nice to be back in the car with Scuderia Ferrari HP, it’s always a very special feeling.

We completed all the planned programme, which was our main target, and I’m really happy with how everything went. I found my references quite quickly and in the afternoon we did some long runs, during which I had a lot of fun. I’d like to thank the team for the opportunity and I’m looking forward to next season.

Isack Hadjar completed his first laps as an official Red Bull Racing driver during Pirelli’s Abu Dhabi test for 2026 F1 tyres, and said he felt welcomed by the team, whilst valuing the chance to work with them ahead of next season. Read his full comments here.

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