RACING
Ferrari Surprises at Silverstone as Charles Leclerc Admits He Still Lacks Confidence in the SF-26
Charles Leclerc admitted Ferrari exceeded expectations at Silverstone, but the Monegasque says he still hasn’t found the confidence with the SF-26 that allowed him to consistently extract the maximum performance from last year’s car.
Ferrari Surprises at Silverstone as Charles Leclerc Admits He Still Lacks Confidence in the SF-26
Ferrari delivered one of the biggest surprises of the 2026 Formula 1 British Grand Prix after locking out the front of the field in Sprint Qualifying at Silverstone. While Lewis Hamilton secured a stunning pole position for the Scuderia, Charles Leclerc admitted the result exceeded every expectation, revealing that he still isn’t completely comfortable with the Ferrari SF-26 despite the team’s encouraging performance.
Heading into the weekend, Ferrari expected Silverstone to expose the weaknesses of its power unit, particularly after the FIA reduced the available energy deployment for the circuit. Instead, the Italian team emerged as one of the strongest contenders on one of the fastest tracks on the calendar.
Ferrari exceeded expectations by fighting for pole position at Silverstone.
Charles Leclerc says Ferrari surprised everyone at Silverstone
Leclerc admitted Ferrari expected to trail Mercedes and Red Bull by a much larger margin. Instead, Hamilton secured pole position while the SF-26 proved far more competitive than anticipated through Silverstone’s high-speed corners.
The Monegasque praised the progress made by Ferrari but acknowledged that the team’s performance came as a genuine surprise.
“We’re extremely surprised that Lewis managed to take pole today. We expected to be much further away from the cars at the front, so this is a huge step forward. As a team, we’re genuinely surprised to be this competitive at a circuit like Silverstone,” Leclerc explained.
Although Ferrari’s pace represented a major boost, Leclerc’s own qualifying performance highlighted another issue that continues to concern him throughout the 2026 season.
Leclerc believes Ferrari has improved significantly but says he still isn’t extracting the car’s full potential.
Leclerc admits the Ferrari SF-26 still doesn’t inspire the same confidence
Despite Ferrari’s strong result, Leclerc admitted he still lacks the confidence he enjoyed with the 2025 Ferrari, making it difficult to consistently push the SF-26 to its absolute limit.
According to Leclerc, Lewis Hamilton has adapted more quickly to the characteristics of the current car, allowing the seven-time world champion to maximize its performance more consistently during qualifying sessions.
Data from Sprint Qualifying showed Leclerc losing valuable time during corner entry and through several high-speed sections, including Turn 6 and the final braking zone, where Hamilton carried significantly more speed.
“I’ve realized for some time now that I don’t have the same ease I had with last year’s car. Even when I put together what feels like a good lap, Lewis is much more often extracting 100 percent of the car, while I’m not,” Leclerc admitted.
The Ferrari driver explained that the biggest issue is not outright speed, but the lack of confidence needed to attack every corner with complete commitment.
Without that feeling, Leclerc believes it becomes nearly impossible to consistently deliver his maximum performance when qualifying matters most. While Ferrari’s breakthrough at Silverstone offers clear signs of progress, the Monegasque insists his priority remains building a stronger connection with the SF-26 before the remainder of the championship, believing that unlocking that confidence will be the key to fighting regularly at the front alongside Hamilton.
Leclerc believes improving his confidence with the SF-26 will be essential to consistently challenge for victories during the remainder of the 2026 Formula 1 season.
Lewis Hamilton believes Ferrari can improve at Spa after identifying the second sector as the SF-26’s main weakness on Friday.
Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari still have work to do after a challenging Friday at the 2026 Belgian Grand Prix. The seven-time Formula 1 world champion believes the second practice session provided a more realistic picture of the team’s competitiveness, identifying Spa-Francorchamps’ second sector as the main area where the SF-26 is losing time.
Ferrari started the weekend with encouraging pace in FP1 and appeared capable of fighting near the front. However, the picture changed during FP2 as Mercedes and McLaren improved their performance, leaving the Italian team searching for additional speed before the rest of the weekend.
Lewis Hamilton identified Spa’s second sector as Ferrari’s main area for improvement after Friday practice.
Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari Lose Ground in Sector Two
According to Hamilton, the SF-26 feels relatively well balanced, but Ferrari is struggling to generate enough performance through the more technical second sector. That weakness is particularly significant because this section of Spa was expected to give the team an opportunity to recover time lost elsewhere.
Hamilton believes the issue is primarily related to aerodynamic load rather than the overall balance of the car. Ferrari therefore faces a difficult compromise: adding more downforce could improve cornering performance, but it could also increase drag and reduce top speed on Spa’s long straights.
The team will analyze Friday’s data and simulations overnight in an attempt to find a better aerodynamic compromise. The objective is to recover the missing lap time through the second sector without sacrificing too much straight-line performance.
Ferrari is searching for a better aerodynamic compromise between cornering performance and straight-line speed at Spa.
Mercedes Remains the Benchmark at Spa
Hamilton believes Mercedes remains the team to beat heading into the rest of the Belgian Grand Prix weekend. Spa’s long straights and demanding energy requirements appear to suit the championship-leading team, while McLaren has also demonstrated competitive performance.
The British driver highlighted McLaren’s strength through medium- and high-speed corners, another important characteristic around Spa-Francorchamps. Ferrari must therefore find additional performance if it wants to challenge its main rivals during qualifying and the race.
Despite the gap, Hamilton does not believe Ferrari needs to make radical setup changes. The seven-time champion feels the SF-26 is already operating relatively close to the correct window, making optimization rather than a complete change of direction the priority.
Ferrari hopes overnight analysis will help the SF-26 close the performance gap before qualifying in Belgium.
Ferrari Searches for More Performance Before Qualifying
The overnight work will focus heavily on simulations and data analysis as Ferrari attempts to extract more performance from its existing package. Finding a few extra tenths in the second sector could prove crucial in a closely matched battle at the front of the grid.
Energy management will also remain an important factor. The characteristics of the 2026 power units mean drivers can face reduced energy deployment on Spa’s long straights, adding another layer of complexity when teams choose their aerodynamic configurations.
For Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari, the objective is now clear: maintain the positive balance of the SF-26 while improving its aerodynamic performance through the most demanding corners. If the team can find that missing time without compromising straight-line speed, Ferrari could move closer to Mercedes and McLaren as the Belgian Grand Prix weekend progresses.
Mercedes has identified the issues behind George Russell’s difficult Friday at Spa and expects the British driver to recover his pace.
George Russell and Mercedes endured a difficult Friday at the 2026 Belgian Grand Prix, but the team believes it has already identified the main factors behind the British driver’s lack of pace. While teammate Andrea Kimi Antonelli set the fastest time of the day at Spa-Francorchamps, Russell finished eighth and more than 1.2 seconds behind.
The result was far from ideal for Russell as he attempts to close the gap to Antonelli in the championship. With 25 points currently separating the Mercedes teammates, finding more performance will be essential for the 28-year-old as the Formula 1 season approaches its summer break.
George Russell finished a challenging Friday at Spa more than a second behind Mercedes teammate Andrea Kimi Antonelli.
Mercedes Identifies Russell’s Main Problems at Spa
Data from Friday’s sessions showed several areas where George Russell and Mercedes lost valuable lap time. The British driver struggled through Les Combes and compromised his exit from Turn 7, while Antonelli was able to carry more speed through the same section.
Russell also appeared to lose performance between Pouhon and Fagnes. Although both Mercedes drivers initially followed a similar speed profile, Russell ran out of usable energy earlier. He also recorded a lower top speed on the run between Blanchimont and the Bus Stop chicane.
Mercedes trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin explained that Russell’s tires were not in their optimal operating window at the beginning of his fastest lap. After a complicated opening practice session, the driver also underestimated the available grip in several corners.
Mercedes believes tire preparation and available grip contributed to Russell’s lack of pace during Friday practice.
F1 2026 Power Units Add Another Challenge
The characteristics of the new 2026 Formula 1 power units are also playing an important role at Spa. Energy deployment and recovery are particularly critical at high-speed circuits, meaning that losing momentum through a corner can have consequences throughout the following section of the lap.
According to Mercedes, slower cornering speeds can directly affect energy deployment on the straights. At circuits such as Spa and Silverstone, where energy management is especially demanding, relatively small differences can therefore become significantly more costly.
The team also discovered a problem with one of Russell’s homologated fuel flow meters during FP1. The issue resulted in the British driver having slightly less power than Antonelli during the morning session, although Mercedes confirmed that the problem was resolved before the second practice.
Mercedes improved the W17 setup between practice sessions after struggling to find the right balance early on Friday.
Mercedes Expects George Russell to Fight Back
Mercedes admitted that its initial setup direction was not ideal for either driver. The team expected more grip than the track ultimately provided, forcing engineers to make significant adjustments before the afternoon session. Those changes improved the W17 and gave both drivers greater confidence.
There are still details to analyze on Russell’s side of the garage, but Mercedes believes the available data provides clear indications of where improvements can be made. With Antonelli also feeling that his fastest lap was not perfect, the team expects the competition to become much tighter as the weekend progresses.
Long-run performance also appears closely matched between the leading teams, leaving Mercedes with work to do before qualifying and the race. If George Russell and Mercedes can address Friday’s tire preparation, cornering and energy deployment issues, the British driver should have an opportunity to recover and return to the front of the field at the Belgian Grand Prix.
Aston Martin endured a difficult Friday at Spa and is already looking ahead to a major AMR26 upgrade package set to debut in Hungary.
Aston Martin’s Hungary upgrade has become the team’s main source of hope after a difficult start to the 2026 Belgian Grand Prix weekend. The Silverstone-based squad expected Spa-Francorchamps to expose the weaknesses of the AMR26, but Friday proved even more challenging as the car finished several seconds away from the front.
With Spa placing significant demands on power and energy efficiency, Aston Martin struggled to compete even within the midfield. The team’s immediate objective is now to complete the Belgian Grand Prix before turning its attention to the major upgrade package scheduled to arrive at the next race in Budapest.
Aston Martin struggled for performance during Friday’s running at Spa-Francorchamps.
Aston Martin Faces a Difficult Belgian Grand Prix
Lance Stroll admitted that Aston Martin has limited options to dramatically improve its situation before Sunday’s race. The team will continue working on setup changes overnight, but the Canadian acknowledged that the AMR26’s fundamental limitations will make significant progress difficult.
The priority is therefore to extract everything possible from the current package while gathering useful information. Aston Martin entered the weekend knowing Spa could be one of its weakest circuits of the season, making the difficult Friday performance less surprising internally.
Stroll made it clear that the team simply needs to get through the Belgian Grand Prix before focusing on what could become a much more important weekend in Hungary.
Lance Stroll expects another challenging weekend before Aston Martin introduces its major upgrade.
Aston Martin Hungary Upgrade Becomes the Main Focus
Despite the lack of competitiveness, Aston Martin is continuing to follow its normal race-weekend procedures. The team is evaluating tires, completing long runs and refining operational processes in preparation for the moment when the car becomes more competitive.
Mike Krack emphasized that Aston Martin cannot afford to relax simply because the AMR26 is currently off the pace. Strategy execution, pit stops and trackside operations must remain at a high level regardless of the team’s position in the competitive order.
That preparation could become particularly important when the Aston Martin Hungary upgrade arrives. The team hopes the new package will provide a significant step forward and allow the AMR26 to compete more consistently against its midfield rivals.
Aston Martin hopes its major Hungary upgrade will unlock significantly more performance from the AMR26.
Hungary Could Mark a Turning Point for the AMR26
Aston Martin has accepted that the current run of races could be particularly difficult, but Budapest represents an opportunity to begin changing the direction of its season. The upcoming package will therefore face considerable expectations after the team’s struggles at Spa.
The immediate challenge remains completing the Belgian Grand Prix as professionally as possible and maximizing every available opportunity. Even without a competitive car, the team wants to ensure its operational performance is ready for when additional pace arrives.
Once Spa is over, however, attention will quickly shift toward Budapest. Aston Martin is counting on its Hungary upgrade to deliver a much-needed improvement and provide the AMR26 with the performance required to begin a stronger second half of the 2026 Formula 1 season.
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