Ferrari hope to avoid any ‘unpleasant surprises’ in Miami after testing new ‘crucial issue’ at Monza

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Ferrari do not expect to have any issues with cooling at the 2026 F1 Miami Grand Prix, despite them not having representative conditions to test in at Monza on Wednesday.

The Scuderia visited the home of the Italian Grand Prix this Wednesday to hold a filming day in the absence of a race for five weeks. Ferrari were eager to stage a filming day at Monza to evaluate their energy management systems around one of F1’s most power-sensitive tracks.

While F1 limits all on-track activity during a filming day to 200km (124mi) and stipulates that teams must use Pirelli’s demonstration tyres, Ferrari also tested their aerodynamic upgrades for the Miami GP. The Maranello crew will have a very different car in Florida come May 1-3.

It is said that 50% of Ferrari’s SF-26 will be new in Miami, as the Scuderia – like many of their rivals – will unveil their first major upgrade package of the season at Hard Rock Stadium. The cancellations of the Grands Prix in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia delayed many teams’ upgrades.

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Ferrari are confident they can avoid any overheating problems at the Miami Grand Prix

Ferrari tested a new version of their Macarena rear wing at Monza this Wednesday, with the pride of Italy still yet to race the revolutionary concept they first revealed back in pre-season in Bahrain. Also, Charles Leclerc had an updated version of Ferrari’s Halo winglets at Monza.

READ MORE: All you need to know about Scuderia Ferrari from team principal to factory

On top of testing their aero upgrades, Ferrari also felt their filming day at Monza provided a chance to test their cooling set-up on the SF-26 ahead of the Miami GP. That is according to Auto Motor und Sport, which claims Ferrari expect cooling will be a ‘crucial issue’ in Florida.

Ferrari are yet to see how their SF-26 copes in the hot conditions expected at the Miami GP next month, having only raced in moderate temperatures in Australia, China and Japan. The conditions in Miami will also be particularly demanding on the hybrid engine components.

But while temperatures did not get above 20°C at Monza on Wednesday, Ferrari’s engineers feel confident that they can avoid any ‘unpleasant surprises’ in Miami. The Scuderia believe their set-up will be sufficient to ensure their hybrid components do not overheat in Florida.

As the 2026 Miami GP is also an F1 Sprint event, teams will have even less time to make any changes to their cooling set-up if they arrive with the wrong package. And with many teams also set to field updates in Miami, having to change their set-up for cooling will not be ideal.