Lewis Hamilton praises ‘effective’ beginning to Ferrari’s testing session.
Lewis Hamilton expressed optimism regarding his initial day of preseason testing with Ferrari, describing it as an “intense but productive” beginning to the 2026 season.
Ferrari participated in F1’s private Barcelona ‘Shakedown Week’ at the Circuit de Catalunya on Tuesday, where teams are restricted to running on three of the five available days.
Hamilton and Charles Leclerc took turns driving around the lunch break during a day characterized by intermittent rain.
Leclerc completed 64 laps, followed by Hamilton who added 57 in the afternoon, resulting in a total of 560 kilometers to commence the preseason testing for the Italian squad.
“It was an intense but productive first day, particularly with the varying weather conditions,” Hamilton stated. “We managed to achieve good mileage on the car and collect a wealth of valuable data, which is crucial given the significant regulatory changes.
“There were no significant problems, providing us with a solid base to continue learning and developing over the coming days.”
Hamilton experienced a challenging debut season in 2025, failing to secure a grand prix victory, although he did achieve sprint pole and a win in China early in the season.
The seven-time world champion has appeared to be in much better spirits since the team’s launch last week, which also included some installation laps at the Fiorano test track.
Ferrari will have the opportunity to run on two of the remaining three days this week in Barcelona.
Sources have informed ESPN that the sporadic rain impacted the running plans for both Ferrari and Red Bull, the only two teams to take to the track on Tuesday, resulting in numerous shorter stints on track.
Leclerc completed 12 of his laps on the medium dry tire, while all other laps Ferrari completed were on either the intermediate or full wet tires.
“It was very challenging today, as it started raining at 10:30 a.m. — obviously Charles had a bit of dry running, but it was wet all afternoon,” Hamilton added to F1 ITV. “Figuring out how to optimize the tire performance was quite productive. I believe we managed around 120 laps or so.
“Considering the wet conditions and the red flag, I think that’s quite solid, so I’m really proud of everyone back at the factory for getting the car to this stage. We gathered a lot of information on the car today — we definitely need to maintain this momentum, [there’s] a lot to accomplish, but it was a good first day.”
He further remarked: “It could certainly be much worse.
“With such a significant regulatory change, getting through the day without any major … there were no major issues, just small incremental improvements we are aiming for. I think it’s encouraging. As I mentioned, we just need to aim for more days like this.”
Ferrari will likely be pleased with their own mileage as well as that of customer team Haas, who completed over 150 laps on Monday with their new Ferrari engine.
In addition to new aerodynamic regulations, 2026 introduces entirely new engines, making mileage a crucial metric in the early weeks of preseason to test reliability limits.
Ferrari had a winless 2025 season but is aiming to return to title contention this year.
Leclerc also conveyed a positive outlook regarding the start.
Speaking to F1 TV after completing his stint, Leclerc stated: “I’m very excited. I’m eager to see what the other teams have planned and when we begin to push a bit harder, to gauge our position relative to the others.
“I believe this year presents a significant opportunity for every team to implement different strategies and potentially gain a larger advantage than we have observed in recent years. I hope we are the team that can make the difference.
“Regardless of where we start, we will strive to the fullest to bring Ferrari back to the forefront. It has been quite a few years, so I hope this one is ours.”
Source: espn.com
