Lewis Hamilton gives verdict on ‘intense’ first Ferrari F1 test in Barcelona

The seven-time world champion drove in wet conditions on Tuesday in the SF-26 car

Lewis Hamilton admitted it was an “intense” day of action as Ferrari testing their 2026 F1 car in wet conditions on Tuesday.

Hamilton took to the cockpit in the afternoon, completing 57 laps in total despite rain falling in Barcelona. Together with Charles Leclerc’s efforts in the morning, Ferrari clocked 123 laps in total.

Ferrari did not win a grand prix last year, with Hamilton failing to record a podium in a chastening debut season for the Scuderia. However, with the first race in Australia just five weeks away, the seven-time world champion was in an optimistic mood after his first Barcelona session.

“It was an intense but productive first day, especially with the mixed weather conditions,” Hamilton said.

“We managed to get good mileage on the car and gather a lot of useful information, which is important with such a big regulation change.

“There were no major issues and that gives us a solid foundation to keep learning and building over the next few days.”

Leclerc set the fastest time out of the two drivers, albeit in dry conditions, with a 1:20:844 over a second down on the quickest time of the day, set by Max Verstappen.

Red Bull did endure a crash late on though, with Isack Hadjar colliding with the barrier as the day drew to a close.

Lewis Hamilton drove in Barcelona on Tuesday (Getty Images)

Leclerc added: “It was good to be back in the car and to start learning a completely new package. Today was about system checks and understanding how everything works, rather than performance, especially with the mixed conditions.

“We completed our programme and everything behaved as expected, which is a positive start and a solid base to build on.”

Matteo Togninalli, Ferrari’s head of track engineering, insisted it was “still very early” to give a performance verdict.

“The focus now is on understanding the car,” he added. “Learning its behaviour and building knowledge step by step over the coming days, focusing on ourselves.”