Lewis Hamilton was back in action in a Ferrari on Tuesday. After clocking some test miles at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in late January, he is once again on the Spanish asphalt this week. Along with teammate Charles Leclerc, he is testing Pirelli’s tyres for the 2026 season on behalf of the team. After the first day of testing, Hamilton recorded a faster time than his new teammate.
On Tuesday, both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc took the wheel of the SF-24. For the seven-time world champion, it was his first taste of last year’s car. The 40-year-old Brit emerged unscathed. During a previous test with the SF-23 at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Hamilton ended up in the wall, but on Tuesday, he managed to keep the Ferrari intact. The former champion also clocked a faster time than Charles Leclerc.
Lando Norris
Admittedly, a tyre test with Pirelli doesn’t say much about the actual balance of power. The focus of the test was on evaluating the new constructions for the 2026 compounds. Ferrari used modified versions of the car for this purpose. Still, after 87 laps, Hamilton recorded a time of 1:15.93, while Leclerc – who drove 86 laps – posted a fastest time of 1:16.06. The Monegasque will have a chance to redeem himself on Wednesday; both drivers will be back in action then.
McLaren also participated in the tests. Lando Norris was at the helm of a modified version of the MCL60, the 2023 car. The 25-year-old Brit drove significantly more laps than his Ferrari rivals and also recorded the fastest time of the day. The Italian La Gazzetta dello Sport previously reported that both Ferrari and McLaren are working on ‘radical changes’ for the 2025 car.
