Ferrari is testing in Spain this week and has two main things in focus – Second outing for record champion Lewis Hamilton in the two-year-old SF-23
Lewis Hamilton has completed his second day of testing as a Ferrari driver. After the record Formula 1 world champion was already able to cover a few kilometers in the SF-23 in Fiorano last week, he gained further impressions in Barcelona on Tuesday.
In better weather than on his first Ferrari outing, Hamilton shared the 2023 Ferrari again with his team-mate Charles Leclerc, with the Monegasque driver on the track in the morning and Hamilton in the afternoon.
According to the Italian edition of Motorsport.com, the main focus of the three-day test in Spain, which will therefore continue until Thursday, is on starts and tire behavior.
Although it is a two-year-old car and not the current Pirelli tires, the impressions of the two pilots should help Ferrari to better understand the behavior of the tires. For example, different strategies are to be tested in a warm-up lap.
The program was defined by the new technical director Loic Serra, who moved from Mercedes to Ferrari last year. He is the direct successor to Enrico Cardile, who in turn left the Scuderia for Aston Martin.
Hamilton is gathering more impressions
For Hamilton, it is also about getting used to Ferrari and, for example, getting used to the engine, which is new to him, or working with his race engineer Riccardo Adami. Adami previously worked with Carlos Sainz and before that with Sebastian Vettel.
Loic Serra himself, by the way, is not at the track, he is in Maranello overseeing the development of the new car for the 2025 season. On Wednesday, the roles will be reversed, with Hamilton driving in the morning and Leclerc in the afternoon. Then, in addition to starts, pit stops are to be trained.
On the third and final day of testing, the regular drivers will then hand over the car to test driver Antonio Giovinazzi. According to Autoracer.it, Ferrari junior Dino Beganovic could also be called up on Thursday.
For Leclerc and Hamilton, the test program continues next week with a two-day tire test for Pirelli, which will also take place in Barcelona. The aim is to try out prototype tires for 2026 using a modified SF-24 from the previous year.
The new 2025 Ferrari will then be presented to the world on February 19, the day after the big Formula 1 season opener in London, where the Scuderia will already be presenting its new livery for this year.
