Leclerc and Hamilton will run 200 kilometers at the temple of speed, they will evaluate the new energy configuration and debut upgrades to the wings and weight. The filming sessions will be behind closed doors.
The Maranello team is not leaving anything to chance, with the Miami Grand Prix on the horizon, Ferrari has organized a commercial filming day at the Monza National Circuit, Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton will take turns behind the wheel of the SF-26 to cover the 200 kilometers that FIA regulations allow for this type of session.
The main goal is clear: to gather valuable information ahead of the fourth round of the 2026 calendar, but there is an extra component that makes this test especially relevant: both drivers will get to try out the new energy configuration that the FIA put forward in recent meetings with FOM and the teams. That change, which directly affects battery management, will be key to the car's performance in Florida.
Ferrari has not held back on technical upgrades for its Miami package, among the confirmed changes are modifications to the front wing and a reduction in the SF-26's minimum weight, additionally, both drivers will find an inverted rear wing that was briefly seen during free practice in the first few races, but that now arrives revised and corrected.
But the crown jewel could be an evolution of the FTM (Flow Turning Manifold) system, that mechanism that redirects hot exhaust flow, since this technology is especially useful because it improves two fundamental aspects: the aerodynamic efficiency of the rear wing and the airflow to the diffuser, and obviously in a championship where hundredths of a second make the difference, any gain in this area is welcome.
The choice of Monza is not random, the historic Italian track, known as the "Temple of Speed", is a circuit traditionally demanding on battery recharge, the long straights and hard braking zones force the power unit to work under extreme conditions, the telemetry data gathered there will be essential for defining the car's setup that will then run at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami.
Just like Alpine did recently at Silverstone, Ferrari has chosen to keep these filming sessions behind closed doors, there will be no fans or media, just the engineers, the drivers and the data. The April break, caused by the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix, has given teams a breather to work on their cars and Ferrari wants to take full advantage of this.
With Miami right around the corner, the Italian team is looking to close the gap on Mercedes, who lead the championship comfortably: the Monza test will be the first step in a comeback that Maranello hopes to pull off on American soil.