Ferrari is continuing preparations with blockbuster signing Lewis Hamilton ahead of the 2025 Formula 1 campaign with a private test at Barcelona.
Hamilton and team-mate Charles Leclerc arrived at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on Tuesday with the Monegasque driver first to head out on track in the SF-23 machine.
Leclerc’s new team-mate assumed driving duties on Tuesday afternoon and the order is set to be flipped on Wednesday.
A three-day programme concludes on Thursday with Ferrari reserve and Le Mans winner Antonio Giovinazzi and academy talent Dino Beganovic taking to the track.
Ferrari’s visit to Catalunya is in accordance with F1’s TPC (Testing of Previous Car) rules.
The rules allow teams to complete up to 1000km across a maximum of four days with full-time drivers in two-year-old cars.
Last week, Hamilton made his on-track debut with Ferrari at the Fiorano test circuit, completing 89km of running, Leclerc completed 42km of track time.
As a result, Ferrari’s driving duo can rake up plenty of laps of the Barcelona circuit this week under the watchful eye of Technical Director Loic Serra, who joined the Scuderia in October from Hamilton’s former employers Mercedes.
Ferrari focusing on two key elements in Barcelona
According to Motorsport.it, Ferrari is using its running Barcelona to focus on starts and tyre wear performance.
The reports suggest Ferrari has “room for improvement” in deploying its clutch in starting procedures, despite Leclerc being among the most prolific starters of the 2024 season.
Tyre wear was a massive strength of Ferrari’s 2024 machine, but that came at a cost over one lap with the Italian team often finding it hard to get its Pirelli’s up to temperature in qualifying.
The 2023 SF-23 that Hamilton and Leclerc are driving in Barcelona treated tyres in an opposite manner, fast over one lap but high-degrading in racing conditions.
This is reflected in Ferrari’s single race win in 2023 and seven pole positions, compared to five wins and four pole positions in 2024.
Hamilton acclimatisation with Ferrari continues
For Hamilton, the track running Barcelona will also be key in continuing his acclimatisation with Ferrari.
After his initial outing at Fiorano, it was reported that Hamilton had trouble with his pedals, an issue that the Italian team has resolved ahead of the Barcelona test.
That will need to be tested rigorously in Barcelona to ensure Hamilton is comfortable in the Ferrari cockpit.
Getting accustomed to the Ferrari steering wheel and furthering dialogue with race engineer Riccardo Adami and the rest of his Ferrari crew will also be key to Hamilton’s development ahead of the 2025 season.
In the era of modern F1, where testing is limited, any time on track for a driver in a new environment is vital.
Luckily for Hamilton, he will remain in Barcelona once Ferrari’s three-day test has concluded to participate in a Pirelli tyre test on February 4 and 5.
Then, Hamilton will run in a modified SF-24 on 2026-spec Pirelli tyres with McLaren also participating in the test.
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