Are Ferrari as quick as they look ahead of 2026 Formula 1 season?

However, an upgrade package brought to the SF-26 for the second Bahrain test seemed to transform the red single-seater.

The SF-26 appeared to be nervous while Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc hustled it in corners, but in the final Bahrain test, it looked to be more composed while the Scuderia turned heads with their trick rear wing.

And while the Maranello squad are not showing early signs of disaster, former F1 driver Johnny Herbert remains skeptical.

"Are Ferrari as quick as they look? Are they really fast, or is it just because everybody else is not actually showing their full deck of cards at the moment?" Herbert wondered.

He added: "I think it's more the latter." If they are onto a good thing, you would hide it, not go hell for leather.

"I always hope that they can get it right, but it never quite comes together. Showing that speed in that test was, I guess, positive, but positive only because Lewis's comments were positive.

"But feeling the car and having it closer to how he wants it to be doesn't necessarily mean it's a winning car. It may be an easier car to drive, but it may not be the fastest car.

"And that is where we're going to have to wait and see because it hasn't quite happened. We saw it last year. They did exactly the same thing with Charles; he was quickest at the end of the test in Barcelona.

"But they didn't end up being the quickest during the season," the Briton rightfully noted, as Ferrari are usually infamous for being the preseason champions.

That is exactly what happened in the 2026 preseason testing as Leclerc was fastest on the final day.

But the new regulations may offer Ferrari a chance; Herbert explained: "It's a good opportunity for Ferrari because they're starting on the level playing field like everybody else, but it's having the right ingredients in the team.

"If you go on where they've been in the last couple of years, it's not been in a very good place. There has been some change within the structure of Ferrari, but is it enough? I'm not sure.

"That's my question mark. Have they been able to create the right environment to have the right people to be able to do that? You wonder.

"I don't think Ferrari can fight for the championship. I think they're going to be in a similar place to where they were last year," the winner of three Grands Prix concluded. (Source: Snabbare)