Ferrari before Austin: Leclerc struggles with new rules, Hamilton sees gains in tyres
Leclerc is losing time above all in Q3 because the 2026 car punishes his driving style. Hamilton believes Ferrari can find a lot of performance through better tyre understanding.
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Ahead of the United States Grand Prix in Austin (25 October), both Ferrari drivers are looking for answers. According to Motorsport-Total.com, Charles Leclerc said the SF-26 is giving him more difficulties than he would like, "especially in Q3". Driving the car the way he is used to confuses the power unit's energy management – with these cars, he said, you pay a price for that. He also sees a few things he can optimise himself.
The numbers back that up: in 2025 Leclerc won the intra-team qualifying battle against Lewis Hamilton 19-5; after the Singapore weekend the 2026 tally stands at just 9-8 in the Monegasque's favour. In the standings Hamilton is third on 229 points, Leclerc fifth on 215. Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli leads with 340.
Hamilton sees the biggest potential in the tyres. "I think the tyres are the things which deliver a huge amount of performance if you get them working properly," the Briton told RacingNews365. "Believe it or not, that's a science in itself, so it is an area we could do better." Ferrari is happy with the car's development, he said, but race-weekend execution must improve too: "It is a lot easier said than done."