F1 Tech | Will 2026 finally be Ferrari's year in Formula 1?

Ferrari completed the Barcelona shakedown, covering more than 400 laps in just three days of testing, proving that the base version of the new SF-26 is excellent and reliable.

It’s still early days to understand the real potential of the new Ferrari, and the two testing sessions in Bahrain will give us a clearer idea of the hierarchies among the top teams.

Still, for now, the Italian team begin the 2026 season better than they did in 2025. The SF-26 seen during the first three days of running will be upgraded for the Bahrain test, meaning the car's aerodynamic shape will change significantly until Melbourne.

On January 23, when Ferrari launched the SF-26, Frederic Vasseur was cautious in his statement. The Maranello-based team wanted to keep a low profile for the beginning of the 2026 season, waiting to see the verdict of the track on the quality of the work done by all the people back in the factory during the winter.

After three days of testing, both Hamilton and Leclerc were seemingly happy and optimistic, agreeing that the SF-26 provides a solid foundation for development throughout the year, though it may not yet be on Mercedes’ level.

The seven-time world champion emphasised the team’s positive attitude after testing: “Everyone’s positive and incredibly enthusiastic. I mean we're under no illusions. We know we've got work to do. Mercedes have done great running as well. I think Red Bull and Haas did some great running as well."

“But I think it's a solid first week and we can really build from here so there may be some big leaps that we need to take, development's is going to be key,” the Briton said.

The running done during the Barcelona shakedown confirmed all these impressions: on Tuesday, the first day of running for the Scuderia, Leclerc completed 64 laps in the morning, almost covering a full Grand Prix distance, with Hamilton completing another 56 laps in the afternoon, for a total of 120 laps on the first day of running (about 560 km on the first day of running!).

The team managed to get in a lot of laps without facing major issues on the engine side, demonstrating that the work done in the engine department during the last year and a half has been exceptional, at least from the reliability point of view. The first two days were mainly spent gathering data and check if they match those seen in the simulations.

On Friday, the third and last day available for all teams, Ferrari’s drivers started to push seriously: beyond the 141 laps completed, Hamilton reportedly managed to set the fastest lap of the testing in the afternoon, proof that the SF-26 demonstrated to be balanced and easy to drive, giving him positive feedback to push hard on the last day of running on the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.

Hamilton confirmed his feelings and enthusiasm after the last day of running: “It's been a really enjoyable week honestly. […] And then just to see the mileage that we've been out to get the last couple of days, due to just so much great work from all the people back at the factory, which I'm really grateful for.

For this reason, 2026 represents a big opportunity for Ferrari: if, as it emerged during the Barcelona shakedown, Ferrari should be quite close to Mercedes (and possibly McLaren) in terms of performance, allowing Hamilton and Leclerc to fight for victories.

However, a huge part of performance will be played by the upgrades: all teams will develop their cars from the testing sessions in Bahrain all the way to Abu Dhabi, meaning that cars will not only look different but especially will generate more downforce and, generally speaking, performance, as the season unfolds.

For this reason, it’ll be fundamental for Ferrari to come up with a strategic series of upgrades that can build on this base version and make it faster and lighter, as the ‘base’ SF-26 version already demonstrated to be fast, reliable, and enjoyable for the drivers.

In conclusion, Ferrari had one of the strongest testing sessions in recent years, completing numerous laps while demonstrating both reliability and speed. With one of the grid’s best driver pairs, the Scuderia is now called to make perfect work, also from a technical point of view.