Ferrari Tests Next-Gen Pirelli Tires With Lewis Hamilton And Charles Leclerc

Ferrari is taking part in a Pirelli test to evaluate the F1 tire supplier's 2026 compounds at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on 4 and 5 February, with Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc back in action for the team. The session is part of ongoing preparations for the upcoming regulation changes in a year's time.

The Pirelli test arrived a week after the Scuderia conducted a private three-day test under the updated Testing of Previous Cars regulations at the same circuit in the team's 2023 car, the SF-23. However, the session went through a hiccup after Hamilton crashed into the barriers but walked away unhurt.

As reported by ESPN, the Ferrari duo will take turns during the Pirelli test in the team's 2024 car, the SF-24, which boosted Ferrari's position in the Constructors' Championship to second place, falling short of the top spot by just 14 points behind McLaren.

The seven-time world champion's first Ferrari track session was carried out at the team's iconic Fiorano test track two days after he arrived at its Maranello base. The Pirelli test session will reportedly be Hamilton's last test in an old F1 car ahead of the F1 75 launch event on 18th February at London's O2 arena, which follows Ferrari's exclusive launch event on 19th February at Fiorano. Pre-season testing in Bahrain will take place just days after Ferrari's car launch, running from February 26 to 28.

Before testing with Ferrari, Pirelli conducted a two-day test with McLaren at Circuit Paul Ricard in France to assess the wet and intermediate tires for the new era. As reported by F1 on SI, the track was artificially watered using sprinklers and tankers to maintain wet conditions throughout the session, allowing for thorough evaluation under controlled circumstances.

Addressing the ongoing test for the 2026 tire, Pirelli’s director of motorsport, Mario Isola, said in a statement:

“The first test session of 2025 proved very useful.

“When testing wet weather tyres, it’s not easy to consistently reproduce the same track conditions to get reliable data, but over these past two days, we were able to acquire plenty of information that will be vital when it comes to defining the new intermediate and extreme wet tyres.”

He added:

“It’s going to be a very busy start to the season for those of our engineers working on development.

“After this test at Paul Ricard, we have a further two test sessions in the coming two weeks. Both of them are in Spain and will focus on dry weather tyres.

"On 4 and 5 February, McLaren and Ferrari will be on track at the Barcelona-Catalunya circuit and then, on 12 and 13 at Jerez de la Frontera, Alpine will be working with us on both days, while McLaren and Mercedes will do one day each.”

The 2026 F1 car will feature narrower tires. The car itself is expected to be more compact and lighter, with a redesigned chassis to house a completely new power unit. This power unit will be equally powered by electric energy and internal combustion, using sustainable fuels.