Daily News 19

Tag: Ferrari SF-26

  • Rivals Copying Ferrari’s F1 Aero Designs Is “a good reward” for Maranello

    Rivals Copying Ferrari’s F1 Aero Designs Is “a good reward” for Maranello

    Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur believes rival Formula 1 teams copying the SF-26’s innovative aerodynamic concepts is a “good reward” for the Maranello-based team.

    Ferrari entered the 2026 regulations cycle with a striking car featuring several notable areas of technical innovation. At winter testing in Bahrain, the team added a winglet to the structure behind the exhaust. Internally known as Flick Tail Mode (FTM), the device generates additional rear downforce at the cost of a small increase in drag.

    Ferrari introduced another concept the following day: a rotating wing nicknamed the Macarena wing, which flips 180 degrees between cornering and straight-line configurations.

    Ferrari’s exhaust wing copied by rivals

    The exhaust wing has been widely copied by Ferrari’s rivals, although the Scuderia’s design has proved difficult to fully reverse engineer because Ferrari developed parts of the rear of the SF-26 around the concept. The FIA has since banned the exhaust device for 2027 by closing the relevant loophole in the technical regulations, preventing similar designs from becoming increasingly extreme.

    Red Bull has also adopted the upside-down wing, while McLaren has tested its own version. McLaren began work on the project after seeing Ferrari’s design during testing, whereas Red Bull independently pursued a different concept.

    “We were disappointed not to pick that up as quickly as Ferrari did and then Red Bull,” said McLaren technical director Neil Houldey. “As soon as we saw it, we realised there was an opportunity there.”

    Speaking exclusively to Motorsport.com, Vasseur said Ferrari’s aerodynamicists and designers had received a boost from leading the development race. He has encouraged the team to embrace innovation and take greater risks.

    Asked whether rivals copying Ferrari’s exhaust wing and rear wing represented a compliment to Maranello, Vasseur replied: “I’m not there to have compliments. I’m there because I want to win. The best compliment for me is to go on the podium.

    “But yes, it’s true that for the guys in the team, to see Red Bull coming with the wing, and I think probably Red Bull started before seeing our wings, but the others starting to copy [it], or even the device on the exhaust, for the guys in the team who had the idea it’s a good reward.”

    Ferrari’s SF-26 emerges as a leading F1 chassis

    Despite Ferrari’s well-documented power unit weakness, the SF-26 can arguably be regarded as the strongest chassis in Formula 1. After a series of upgrades, Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton have both won a grand prix, at Silverstone and Barcelona respectively, while Ferrari sits second in the championship standings.

    The SF-26 was the first Ferrari designed under technical director Loic Serra. He was signed in 2023 but joined the team from Mercedes only at the end of 2024 after an extended gardening leave period.

    Vasseur said Serra’s delayed arrival and the time required to develop the 2026 car illustrated why it takes so long to transform an F1 team.

    “The frustration that you can have sometimes in F1 is that on the technical side the process is mega long, because you have a lot of inertia,” he explained.

    “For example, we started to discuss [with Loic] mid ’23 and he joined the team at the end of 2024. Then he’s focused on the car of ’26, and he’s still recruiting people to help him. It means that this process is about years, when on the other hand we want to get results next week.

    “I’m very, very pleased with the choices that we made, with the set-up that we have, and the collaboration that we have in the team. The team is strong. The collaboration is mega strong.”

  • How Ferrari Can “push until the end” With F1 2026 Upgrades

    How Ferrari Can “push until the end” With F1 2026 Upgrades

    Ferrari will continue developing its 2026 Formula 1 car until the end of the season, team principal Fred Vasseur has confirmed, dismissing suggestions that cost-cap restrictions could force the team to reduce its upgrade rate.

    The team has introduced a steady stream of incremental updates for its SF-26, helping Ferrari remain second in the constructors’ championship and enabling both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc to win a grand prix this season.

    Ferrari’s development programme will continue at its home race in Monza this weekend. The team is expected to bring smaller aerodynamic improvements, along with its second engine update following the latest ADUO ranking.

    Ferrari maintains its 2026 F1 upgrade plan

    The performance gap between teams has narrowed significantly, particularly at circuits where the 2026 power units have less influence. Mercedes, McLaren and Ferrari were separated by just one tenth of a second in sprint qualifying at Zandvoort, while three tenths has regularly been the difference between pole position and the third row of the grid.

    Teams that can continue adding performance late in the season therefore retain an opportunity to make substantial progress in the championship. However, they must balance wind-tunnel development with cost-cap restrictions and the resources needed for the 2027 car project.

    Speaking exclusively to Motorsport.com, Ferrari chief Vasseur said the Scuderia had no concerns about the cost cap and would continue its aggressive development programme.

    “The strategy is that we will continue to push until the end,” Vasseur said. “We have a plan. We have no issue with the cost cap, we are following the plan and will continue like this.

    “It’s true that you have different strategies. You have McLaren coming each three or four races with a big package on the car, and we are more trying to bring upgrades each race but much smaller. But at the end, in terms of cost, it’s the same.

    “What is challenging, probably, is that we are still developing with 11 races to go, and I think a crash like Max [Verstappen] in Zandvoort is huge in terms of cost cap [for Red Bull]. It’s difficult to anticipate the number of crashes that you could have until the end of the season.”

    Ferrari explains its frequent smaller upgrades

    Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull have all introduced significant updates this season, while Mercedes has fallen behind in development. Mercedes’ next major package is scheduled for October’s Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, with rival teams having closed the gap in recent weeks and months.

    Mercedes boss Toto Wolff said the team “hasn’t got the money to put developments on the car” beyond its current plans. However, he also suggested Ferrari and other rivals could eventually have to slow their development after bringing so many new parts to the track.

    Vasseur declined to assess Mercedes’ strategy without a full understanding of its approach. He did, however, explain how Ferrari has efficiently delivered such a high number of upgrades.

    “I don’t want to speak about Mercedes because I don’t understand, but with McLaren it’s a bit linked to how you develop in the wind tunnel and the capacity of production,” the Frenchman said. “We found our best approach by almost bringing upgrades each race. One week it’s mechanical, one week it’s aero, and we are continuing like this. It’s fitting with our capacity of production, with our wind tunnel capacity, and it’s going well.

    “Now, if McLaren want to do things differently, it’s because they have good reasons to do it. The set-up of the teams is different; the configuration is different. But at the end of the day, over a season we are almost following each other in terms of development.”

  • Ferrari Unveils Michael Schumacher-Inspired F1 Livery for Italian Grand Prix

    Ferrari Unveils Michael Schumacher-Inspired F1 Livery for Italian Grand Prix

    Ferrari will run a special Michael Schumacher tribute livery at its home Formula 1 race in Monza, marking the 30th anniversary of the German driver’s first season with the team.

    The Ferrari SF-26 driven by Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc will feature an even redder appearance, with the white section removed from the engine cover. Both drivers’ number decals will use a retro font, while Schumacher’s signature will appear between the numbers and title sponsor HP’s logo.

    The car will also feature gold detailing on the BBS wheel rims and Schumacher’s trademark white stars on its nose. Hamilton, Leclerc and Ferrari’s entire trackside team will wear specially designed clothing for the occasion.

    Ferrari to display Schumacher’s iconic cars at Monza

    The tribute livery draws inspiration from the F310 that Schumacher first raced for Ferrari in 1996. That car will be displayed throughout the Monza weekend alongside his final Ferrari, the 248 F1 from 2006, and the F2002, which became Schumacher’s and Ferrari’s most dominant car.

    Schumacher’s former team-mate Rubens Barrichello and close friend Sebastian Vettel, who also drove for Ferrari, will drive the F2002 around Monza on Saturday and Sunday for a lap of honour celebrating his legacy.

    “Michael’s time at Ferrari was about much more than just wins and titles: his relentless pursuit of perfection, attention to detail, discipline and ability to be a true team player helped create a culture that became one of the defining characteristics of the Scuderia,” the team stated.

    “Thirty years later, that culture remains part of the way Ferrari approaches competition today. Monza is therefore the ideal place to celebrate this legacy, not just by looking back at what was achieved, but by recognising values that remain part of Ferrari today.”

    Schumacher is Ferrari’s most experienced driver, having started 179 races for the team between 1996 and 2006. The 57-year-old German is also Ferrari’s most decorated driver, winning five of his seven world championships with the Maranello-based team between 2000 and 2004.

    During Ferrari’s highly successful era under Jean Todt and Ross Brawn, Schumacher recorded 72 wins and 58 pole positions for the team.

    Source: www.motorsport.com

  • How Fred Vasseur Is Challenging Ferrari to Take More Risks

    How Fred Vasseur Is Challenging Ferrari to Take More Risks

    Ferrari’s 2026 Formula 1 car, the SF-26, has emerged as one of the grid’s most innovative designs after debuting several striking aerodynamic solutions during winter testing in Bahrain.

    The car featured an unusual vane behind the exhaust pipe on the opening day, internally known as FTM. One day later, Ferrari introduced an even more eye-catching rear wing that rotated 180 degrees between cornering and straight-line modes. The design was quickly nicknamed the “Macarena wing.”

    Ferrari leads F1 innovation with SF-26

    The exhaust wing and upside-down rear wing are only the most visible examples of Ferrari’s technical innovation. While both elements have had a relatively minor performance impact, their unusual appearance attracted significant attention and highlighted a Ferrari team increasingly willing to lead rather than follow its rivals.

    Red Bull and McLaren have since introduced their own versions of the upside-down rear wing. Red Bull is believed to have developed its solution independently of Ferrari, while McLaren began work on its design after recognising the opportunity created by Ferrari’s concept.

    Ferrari’s exhaust wing has also been widely copied, although rival teams have reportedly struggled to replicate it as effectively. Ferrari made specific rear-end design choices to accommodate the system, making the FTM difficult to reverse-engineer.

    Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari

    Photo by: Marcel van Dorst / EYE4images / NurPhoto via Getty Images

    Ferrari’s innovative 2026 car is the result of a deliberate cultural shift led by team principal Fred Vasseur. Since joining the team at the start of 2023, Vasseur has focused on reducing blame culture at Maranello and encouraging engineers to take greater risks.

    In an interview with Motorsport.com, Vasseur said Ferrari needed a change in mentality across every area of the team, not only aerodynamic design. In Formula 1, small performance gains can accumulate quickly, particularly as the field becomes more closely matched. Those margins can determine whether a driver starts from the front row or qualifies sixth.

    “It’s true that from day one I had the feeling that we have to take more risks,” Vasseur explained. “More risk on track, more risk on the innovation, on the development to take a different direction compared to the others, not to follow the others.”

    Ferrari’s willingness to take risks has not always produced the desired result. The team’s design choices, car set-up decisions and race strategies have occasionally taken it in the wrong direction. Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton have both won a grand prix this year in a more competitive Ferrari, but Vasseur believes the team’s decision-making will improve as it continues to adopt a bolder approach.

    “Sometimes it’s paying off, sometimes it’s not,” he said. “When you are a bit aggressive on strategy, sometimes you are a genius, like in Barcelona, and sometimes not, but we are the same guys on the pitwall.

    “I think we need to develop this mentality because you are improving on taking risks. You will improve in the risk assessment. You will improve in the capacity to make decisions, it means that we have to continue to do so, and we will do better and better race after race.”

    Cost cap raises the stakes for technical risks

    Changing an established company culture takes time, which explains why the process has remained a major focus for Vasseur. Innovation also carries significant risks under Formula 1’s cost cap and development restrictions, as teams cannot simply invest unlimited money in experimental ideas.

    “I’m very pleased with what we did in terms of options of development, because with the cost cap, when you are taking this direction, if it’s not paying off, it’s negative,” Vasseur explained. “It’s not that if it’s not paying off, it’s [just] a shame. You are putting your money, you are betting on something.”

    Vasseur said he was “more than keen” for Ferrari to continue leading Formula 1’s development race. He believes the team’s changing culture is giving engineers the confidence to innovate instead of playing safe because they fear the consequences of failure.

    “It was important for the guys in the team to feel the support from the company when they were innovating,” the Frenchman said. “I hope it’s only the start of this process, and that we will be able to continue to have the same approach and the same dynamic.

    “We will have a convergence of directions that we are taking, because one of the favourite parts of F1 is also to copy the others. But if we can stay one step ahead and lead the pack on some topics on some projects, I am more than keen.

    “For sure it will be more and more difficult, but it will be the same challenge for everybody.”

    Frederic Vasseur, Ferrari

    Photo by: Michael Potts / LAT Images via Getty Images