Last Updated on January 31 2026, 10:25 am

Having driven Ferrari’s first effort at a virtual 2026 car in the simulator last July, Charles Leclerc looked like a man who’d seen a ghost when he reported the experience. “Let’s say it’s not the most enjoyable race car I’ve driven so far but we are still in a moment where the project is relatively new,” he said.

“My hope relies in the fact that it will evolve quite a bit in the next few months but it’s no secret that I think the regulations for next year is going to be a lot more … probably less enjoyable for drivers to drive. So yeah, I’m not a big fan of it for now but it’s the way it is and at the end of the day I think there’s a challenge and I would like the challenge of maximising a very different car to what it is at the moment. But will I enjoy it? Probably not.”

Hardly a ringing endorsement for what has been years of debate and procrastinating over the look and feel of the all new Formula One cars and their powertrains. And Leclerc was not alone in his criticism of the new F1 era as Lance Stroll opined after a session in the Aston Martin simulator.

 

 

 

New F1 era “a science project”

“It’s just a bit of a shame we’re just – Formula 1’s just – taking that path of electric energy and we’ve had to shed all the downforce off the cars to support the battery power,” he said. “It should be fun to see some light, nimble, fast cars with a lot of downforce and just simplify the whole thing a little bit. Less so of an energy, battery, championship, science project and more of just a Formula 1 racing championship.”

Stroll went on to reveal a number of other drivers felt the same, but were being gagged by their teams for “political reasons.” Now as the Barcelona test that wasn’t a test – it was a shakedown – draws to a conclusion, all the drivers have had a chance to experience not a ghost car on a screen but the real thing.

Immediately striking has been the conversion of Charles Leclerc who believed that 2026 would be “less enjoyable.” Having completed a mammoth 89 laps in the dry on Thursday, the Monegasque driver has shed is expectation of mere technical driving experience having felt the physical and intellectual demands required to get the best from the car.

“It’s super interesting,” Leclerc now admits. ”It’s the first day for me in the car in normal conditions, so a lot to learn, a lot to discover and it’s a very different car to what we’ve been driving since I arrived in Formula 1. I take that as a challenge and I actually quite like that everything is new and then there might be an opportunity for us drivers to think outside the box.”

Brundle on Red Bull factory visit: “Horner already showed me that”

 

 

 

Leclerc does an about turn

The conversion on the road to Damascus could not have been a more radical shift in perception and despite his fears Leclerc believes the new cars retain that ‘F1 feel.’ “I definitely feel more and more comfortable. It remains an F1 car as well in a way, it’s not like I was completely lost when I got back into the car and I was at ease quite quickly,” he added. “With these new systems and obviously with 50% of the power that comes from the electrical engine, it makes it quite a bit more challenging to manage that, so the learning curve is quite steep. But it’s very interesting.”

For those who English is a first language, “very interesting” would often be a sardonic kind of response. Yet Leclerc appeared genuinely engaged in the new formula and was content with the programme Ferrari had run. Yet as Charles remarks, this test is but there beginning of the future and whilst racking up the mileage is good in Barcelona, racing is another thing entirely.

“In terms of performance, I have no idea where we are and it’s just a huge question mark. There’s nothing that tells me, ‘okay, we are more or less here or here’,” mused Leclerc. “But in terms of checklists of the things we wanted to go through, we kind of are on time with our programme, so that’s good.

“The checklist is massive, still, so there are still many, many things that we want to test and try differently, whether it’s some set-up on the car, some different things or some approaches that we have with this new system.”

Unreported Red Bull engine issues during testing

 

 

 

Lance Stroll too eats his own words

Even Lance Stroll who waited patiently for most of the day before the Aston Martin mechanics finally readied his car was positive. 

“Nice to be back in the car after a few weeks off,” the Canadian said. “Everyone did a good job in getting the car ready today. It was a long day for all the mechanics and everyone in the team, pushing flat-out to get the car ready, so we got a few laps in at the end of the day and it was feeling good.”

Aston Martin are embarking on their first year as a works based team, with Honda partnering as their powertrain provider. “[It’s] a big project, very complex. A lot of hours have gone into this machine, so it was nice to get behind the wheel and getting used to the new Honda power unit and these new cars. It’s exciting.”

 

 

 

Mercedes lead the way in F1 testing – or do they?

The final day of Barcelona pre-season testing is well under way, but it is taking place without Mercedes and the Racing Bulls. Both these teams have completed their three day allocation of track time allowed by the FIA across the five days this week at there Circuit de Catalunya.

Whilst the much anticipated Aston Martin finally stuttered into life on day 4 before breaking down after just a handful of laps, Mercedes were completing an impressive day with George Russell racking up 77 laps compared to his junior team mates 90.

Across their allocated days, the Mercedes drivers combined have clocked 502 laps and some 2338 kilometres. Thats the equivalent of almost eight full Grand Prix races which with an all new powertrain and chassis is impressive indeed. By comparison, the Racing Bulls managed 319 laps across their three day allocation…. READ MORE