Jun.14 (GMM) George Russell may be threatening to end Kimi Antonelli’s run of dominance in Barcelona, but Ferrari’s pace is emerging as one of the biggest stories of the Spanish GP weekend.
After six wins from six races for Mercedes in 2026, Lewis Hamilton will line up between Russell and Antonelli on the grid, having continued his recent run of surprising superiority over teammate Charles Leclerc.
The Monegasque’s difficult period also continued after his Monaco crash, which he blamed on Brembo. But in Barcelona, Leclerc freely – and emotionally – admitted all fault.
Ferrari boss Frederic Vasseur rejected suggestions that Leclerc is being outperformed or psychologically affected by Hamilton’s new top form.
“I don’t think so,” he told Sky Deutschland. “There were various problems.
“I don’t even want to talk about Monaco anymore. This weekend he had strong pace and he was in good form and was never behind.
“Maybe he was a little too overconfident there.”
Vasseur was instead eager to highlight Ferrari’s growing competitiveness after a difficult start to the new regulations era.
“We have the closest qualifying gap to Mercedes,” he said. “Lewis is improving along with the team.
“The goal when you start on the front row is always to win, but the challenge is huge because we’ll have to manage the tyres.”
Hamilton himself credited Ferrari’s latest upgrades for further closing the gap to the dominant Mercedes package.
“The guys did a great job in Maranello,” he said. “With the updates we’re less than a tenth behind Mercedes.
The seven-time world champion believes Ferrari could soon return to winning ways. “I’m sure this car will win races given the path it’s taken, hopefully already here.”
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff admitted Ferrari’s progress had come as something of a surprise. “My old friend?” he laughed when asked about Hamilton. “Not old in age, otherwise he’d get angry!
“When he feels good and has a car he likes to drive, he goes incredibly fast. We thought McLaren would be fast, but Ferrari was strong.
“They practically changed the whole car,” he smiled again, referring to Ferrari’s Barcelona updates.
Former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher believes the new regulations are simply suiting Hamilton’s driving style.
“It looks like Hamilton is simply getting on superbly with the new concept,” he said. “With the new aerodynamics, less grip, narrower and more agile cars that you can somehow throw into the corners, it seems to suit him better.
“You have to give him that. Kudos. He hasn’t always done good races, but lately he’s been doing a superb job.”