In an interview for F1 after the last day of the 2026 F1 Barcelona shakedown, Lewis Hamilton looks back at an “enjoyable week” after a winter of hard work for himself and Ferrari.
“It’s been a really enjoyable week, honestly. I think a huge amount of work over the winter on my side, personal side, but then what the team have done over the winter to make changes going into the test.”
An “unusual start” to the F1 Barcelona shakedown
Ferrari took to the track for the first time during Day 2 of the Barcelona shakedown and experienced an “unusual start” as rain hit the Catalunya circuit. However, the rain didn’t deter Ferrari as they ran their program, with Hamilton at the wheel of the SF-26 in the afternoon session. While it was not the start to the Barcelona shakedown that Hamilton would have chosen, the 41-year-old was glad to gain experience in these conditions ahead of the season start, recalling last year’s rain-marred season opener.
“A bit of an unusual start to the week when we tested and had a completely wet day, which was not something you would normally opt for. But last year I went to the first race, and it was on the Sunday of the actual race, which was the first time I had driven the Ferrari [in the wet], and that was a very hard race. It was good to have that experience and get that knowledge.
Hamilton credits the Ferrari factory team for the smooth run in the Barcelona shakedown
Despite the less-than-ideal conditions at the F1 Barcelona shakedown, Hamilton was pleased to see Ferrari run consistently without any major issues. The Briton credited the team back at the factory in Maranello for the positive outcome, which even saw Hamilton post the (unofficially) fastest overall time on the last day of the shakedown.
“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 because having consistency, not having problems, of course, there are always small things, but we didn’t really have any downtime moments.”
Even though the F1 Barcelona shakedown went down without a hitch, Hamilton cautions that Ferrari may still run into issues over the course of the next few weeks.
“I’m sure perhaps they could potentially come over the next weeks, but otherwise it’s a really, really solid couple of days.”
Hamilton thinks the new generation of cars are more fun and enjoyable
Spending three days driving the SF-26 during the F1 Barcelona shakedown, Hamilton feels that this new generation of cars, which come with less downforce, are more “fun to drive.” While the cars oversteer, snap, and slide, Hamilton thinks that they are “easier to catch” and thus “more enjoyable.”
“Then, in terms of just understanding the car and the balance, we have a lot less downforce than in previous years. The car generation is actually a little bit more fun to drive. It’s oversteery, snappy, and sliding, but it’s a little bit easier to catch. I would definitely say more enjoyable.”
The overall verdict after the first week back is positive, but Hamilton is aware that Ferrari, like every team, will have to put in the work to improve.
“We definitely have work to do to improve, of course, like everybody does. But I think we’ve had great debriefs, everyone’s really on it. I really feel like there’s a winning mentality in every single person on the team, more than ever. So, it’s a positive,” Hamilton says about the mood within Ferrari.
Development will be “key” after an “enjoyable week” at the Barcelona shakedown
After an “enjoyable week” at the F1 Barcelona shakedown for Hamilton and Ferrari, the 7-time Champion reckons that the team is aware that it has “work to do,” considering competitors like Mercedes and Red Bull enjoyed a great run in Barcelona too. Hamilton feels that Ferrari might need to take “big leaps” and that development will be key. Despite the workload ahead, Hamilton says that everyone in the team is “positive and incredibly enthusiastic.”
“Everyone’s positive and incredibly enthusiastic, I mean, we’re under no illusions, we know we’ve got work to do. Mercedes have done a great running as well. I think Red Bull and Haas did some great running as well. So, we don’t really know where we are, but I think it’s a solid first week, and we can really build from here.
“There may be some big leaps that we’re going to need to take, development’s going to be key, just really just making sure we leave no stone unturned, and we’re just really clear and concise with our communication and the decisions we take.
“It’s going to take all of us to be at our best, and I’m just seeing that everyone’s really coming with new energy this year, which is great.”
There will be little time to rest for Hamilton and teammate Charles Leclerc after the F1 Barcelona shakedown, as the Ferrari duo will be busy preparing for the upcoming 2026 season. The Briton outlines that the next week will be packed with promotional work, training, and meetings with engineers in between to prepare for the pre-season tests in Bahrain and the season opener in Melbourne.
A busy schedule ahead of the start of the 2026 F1 season for Hamilton and Leclerc
Meanwhile, Ferrari will take learnings from the Barcelona shakedown to make alterations to the car ahead of the Bahrain tests, with input from both Hamilton and Leclerc.
“Quite busy, we still have a lot of promotional days that we have next week, so next week’s really mostly a promotional period.
“Obviously, the team will be digesting everything that’s happening this week, taking all our notes from Charles [Leclerc] and me, and trying to rework, remap, and reconfigure things for the Bahrain test, setting up a plan. We will have meetings in between our long shoot days. So, we have big shoot days next week, Charles [Leclerc] and I, we do them all together.
“I think they’re like eight or ten-hour shoot days, so not crazy, but still in between them, there’s training in the morning, though Charles [Leclerc] doesn’t like to get up early, so I don’t think he’ll be training.
“Then the shoots, then we have the meeting with the engineers in between, so it’s like it’s full days. It should be fun. And then sim day, and then just training, getting prepared for the test, and then we’ll be away for a couple weeks, then we come back, and there’ll be a couple more promo days, and then probably sim preparation for the race.”
