Lewis Hamilton Gives Telling Verdict On Ferrari’s 2026 Car After Barcelona Test

Lewis Hamilton has weighed in with his view on the upcoming 2026 F1 season with Ferrari after testing in Barcelona.

Ahead of the first race of the season in just over a month at the Australian Grand Prix, preparations were stepped up by all teams as the 2026 F1 cars were on the track for the first time this week as testing took place at the Circuit de Catalunya.

2026 is a huge year for all teams given the new regulations which are giving a huge element of unpredictability. But it is make or break for Hamilton, who had a torrid first season with Ferrari.

Hamilton left Mercedes to join his boyhood team and replaced Carlos Sainz Jr as Charles Leclerc's partner on the grid.

But the seven-time world champion had a nightmare first season, finishing sixth in the drivers' standings with 156 points and failing to secure a single podium.

Hamilton was regularly downbeat after various races and could never really click with the car, which had a number of issues.

Hamilton is looking for a much better 2026 campaign. Image: Getty

2026 offers a fresh start for the 41-year-old and already the signs are positive as Hamilton set the quickest time of the week at testing, clocking in at 1:16.348 on the final day.

And for the first time in a long time, Hamilton expressed plenty of optimism after a "really solid couple of days" as he hailed the "winning mentality".

"In terms of understanding the car and the balance, we have a lot less downforce than in previous years," Hamilton said, as per Racingnews365.

"The car generation is actually a little bit more fun to drive, it is oversteery, snappy and sliding, but it is easier to catch, and I would definitely say more enjoyable.

"But we definitely have to improve, as everybody does, but we've had great debriefs, everyone is really on it, and I feel like there is a winning mentality in every single person in the team, more than ever.

"It's been a really enjoyable week, and a huge amount of work was done over the winter on my personal side, and then what the team have done to make changes going into the test."

Ferrari's last title win came in 2008 when they wont the constructors' - a year on from Kimi Rakkonen winning the drivers' championship by a single point.

Ferrari will participate in further testing in Bahrain next month, prior to the season getting underway in Melbourne on 8 March.