F1MATHS: Where does Ferrari's SF26 lose out to Mercedes in Barcelona?

Ferrari might have brought a significantly upgraded aerodynamic package to this weekend's Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, but the Italian team appears to be a "big chunk off the pace" according to Lewis Hamilton. F1Technical's senior writer Balazs Szabo reveals where Ferrari's SF26 is losing out to Mercedes.

The Scuderia arrived in Spain with a significant upgrade package — including revisions to the front wing, floor, sidepods and diffuser — and Friday’s running offered the first real indication of its effectiveness, even if the competitive picture remains incomplete.

The day began with Dino Beganovic stepping into Hamilton’s car for FP1 as part of Ferrari’s rookie‑driver obligations. The young Swede delivered an assured performance, finishing eighth and completing a clean, productive session.

“I’m really happy with my free practice session today,” he said afterwards. “The whole car and PU were new to me, so the first part was all about learning and getting up to speed.

"I felt a big difference going from used Mediums to the Softs, and I really enjoyed my last run on that compound. I’m satisfied with the steps I made over the course of the session and it gives me lots of new experience to take with me.

"I want to thank Scuderia Ferrari for the support. It’s always special to jump in the car and work with this team, and I hope to have the opportunity to do so again soon.”

Leclerc, meanwhile, placed third in FP1, half a second behind George Russell’s leading time but consistently among the frontrunners. The Monegasque driver continued to set the tone for Ferrari in FP2, where he finished fourth with a 1:15.799. Reflecting on the day, Leclerc struck a cautiously optimistic note.

“It was an interesting day. We have a few new items on the car and we’ve made a step forward. Regarding competitiveness, it’s too early to say and I think our competitors are quite a bit ahead of us. We have to focus on maximizing what we have now and we will see what we can do tomorrow.”

Hamilton’s return to the cockpit in FP2 proved more challenging. The seven‑time World Champion struggled with balance and grip throughout the session, running wide over the grass at one stage and repeatedly questioning whether his tyre degradation was higher than that of his rivals.

He ended the session ninth, nearly eight tenths off Norris’ benchmark. “My only session today was quite a challenging one,” Hamilton admitted.

“We had an issue with the front wing which made things a bit more complicated, particularly in terms of tyre preparation, and missing FP1 meant I was a bit on the back foot. There is still some work to do, but we've gathered useful data and we'll focus on making the right improvements overnight.”

Pressed further on Ferrari’s upgrade package, Hamilton was frank about his lack of feeling for the new components. “I have zero feel of it, so I have no idea where… We’re obviously not quick.

"Charles has obviously had two sessions, and I think he’s four‑tenths or something off the McLarens and the Mercedes, so clearly we’re quite a chunk off still, but hopefully tomorrow we can try and close the gap a bit.”

George Russell’s fastest lap in the second free practice session for the Barcelona‑Catalunya Grand Prix offered a revealing snapshot of the differences between Mercedes and Ferrari.

The lap‑time overlay against Charles Leclerc’s best effort showed a clear pattern: Mercedes extracting decisive performance in the straight‑line and full‑throttle sections, while Ferrari continued to rely on its characteristic cornering stability and mid‑speed rotation.

The most striking element of the comparison was Russell’s advantage along the one‑kilometre main straight, where the green overlay stretched unbroken from the exit of the final corner to the braking point for Turn 1.

This indicated a more efficient low‑drag configuration from the Mercedes W15, allowing Russell to reach a noticeably higher top speed. That straight‑line strength alone accounted for a significant portion of his lap‑time gain. The same pattern repeated itself through the other high‑speed areas of the circuit.

Russell maintained a small but consistent margin through the long, sweeping Turn 3, carried strong speed from Turn 4 to Turn 5, and again held the advantage in the acceleration zone from Turn 7 to Turn 9.

These segments suggested that Mercedes had found an effective balance between aerodynamic efficiency and power‑unit deployment, enabling the car to extract more from the full‑throttle phases that make up a large percentage of the Barcelona lap.

There was, however, one notable exception. Between Turn 9 and Turn 10, the overlay turned red, signalling that Leclerc’s Ferrari was quicker in this specific full‑throttle segment.

The explanation likely lay in Ferrari’s superior exit from Turn 9, where the SF‑24’s strong front‑end response allowed Leclerc to carry more minimum speed and launch onto the short straight with a better initial acceleration phase.

Ferrari may also have been deploying slightly more hybrid energy at this point of the lap, a characteristic that has appeared in several sessions this season. This was the only high‑speed section where Ferrari clearly outperformed Mercedes, but it demonstrated that the SF‑26 still possessed strengths that could be exploited in qualifying and race trim.

Beyond the straights, the smaller red patches around Turns 4, 7 and 12 confirmed that Ferrari remained competitive in the medium‑speed corners. Leclerc typically gained a few hundredths in these sections thanks to the car’s predictable rotation and stable mechanical platform, which allowed him to carry more mid‑corner speed.