Lewis Hamilton says he still doesn't have a feeling for Ferrari SF-26

Hamilton was at the wheel of the SF-26 on a wet Tuesday afternoon in Barcelona as Ferrari started their private shakedown on the second day with Charles Leclerc running in the morning.

However, Hamilton and his teammate managed to put in a decent number of laps despite the tough weather.

The Briton told F1 TV: “Very challenging today, obviously, because it started raining at 10:30, so obviously Charles had a little bit of dry running, but then it's been wet all afternoon, so figuring out how to get the tyres working.

“It was really productive, I think we got about 120 laps or something like that; given it's in the wet conditions and we had a red flag and that, I think that's pretty solid.

“So, really proud of everyone back at the factory for getting the car to this point, and we got a lot of information on the car today.

"We definitely need to keep it up, lots and lots to do, but a good first day," Hamilton insisted.

With Haas delivering decent mileage on Day 1 with a Ferrari power unit, the Italian team seem to have a reliable machine so far.

“I mean, it could be so much worse," Hamilton commented. "To get through the day without too many major… there were no major issues; it’s just small little increments that we’re trying to improve on.

“I think it’s great. As I said, we just need to try and get some more days like this.”

However, the 41-year-old driver admitted that the 2026 regulation changes are the biggest he has witnessed over his long F1 career.

He said:“I've had the privilege of being here for a long time, 19 years, so been through quite a lot of different cars. So a lot of different swapovers, but this is the biggest one that I've noticed.

“I don't want to say too much about it just yet, because it's difficult to know. As I said, I've only driven it in the rain," he said of the SF-26. "I mean, it's a lot less downforce than we had last year, but we don't have the porpoising that we had last year, or at least in 2022 when we started it. So there's definitely positives.

“And it's massively challenging for everybody, for every team, which I think is great. It really puts everyone on the back foot. I mean, everyone's really going to kind of be on their toes and learning as you go.

“And whoever develops the fastest, whoever is the smartest in optimizing the time and the energy deployment and development, will be the ones at the top.

"And I think this gives everyone a chance to get to the top, which is good. And so we are just all hands on deck trying to make sure we maximize it," the Ferrari driver maintained.

Ferrari has two more days of testing allowed and Hamilton hopes to get to know the SF-26 better.

He said: “Well, I’m hoping to experience the car in the dry, and I think just understanding balance.

“I’ve not driven it in the dry, so I don’t really have a feeling for it. Obviously we drove it in the wet, which is only the front part.

“Then just understanding the deployment. I think deployment’s going to be crucial, and understanding that, how to utilize the power, the battery throughout the lap, and recharging, all that kind of stuff.

“I mean, we’ve done a huge amount of work—everyone’s done a huge amount of work on the simulator, so it’s not like it’s 100 percent brand-new for us.

"But we still have to go through our sessions and through the data to try and optimize it," Hamilton concluded.