FIA wants ‘closer look’ at Lewis Hamilton’s 2026 F1 car before allowing Ferrari’s ‘aggressive’ idea

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Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc recorded their first laps at the 2026 F1 Barcelona shakedown test this Tuesday, but the FIA has ‘applied the brakes’ on Ferrari’s new car.

While many of their rival teams elected to sit out the second day of running at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya due to the weather, Ferrari joined Red Bull in putting their packages on track. Leclerc enjoyed the first laps in the SF-26 before Hamilton took over in the afternoon.

Leclerc recorded a handful of laps in dry conditions before the rain arrived, and remained as Hamilton took over. Ferrari even saw Hamilton have a trip through the gravel on his first run, but the biggest off of the day came at the end when Isack Hadjar crashed the Red Bull RB22.

Ferrari are using a baseline version of their 2026 F1 car in Barcelona, as the Scuderia believe it better serves their plan to keep their real design a secret for now. The 2026 F1 regulations mark the biggest overhaul of the rulebook to date, with new engine, aero and chassis rules.

Are we looking at the car that will win Ferrari their first drivers’ championship since 2007?

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The FIA wants a ‘closer look’ at Ferrari’s ‘aggressive’ 2026 F1 aero concept

After the Maranello squad went winless in 2025 thanks in no small part to their chronic ride height problems, Ferrari have returned to push-rod suspension in 2026. Additionally, Ferrari have overseen a technical revolution to try to cut the aerodynamic drag with their 2026 car.

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about the 2026 F1 engine and aero regulations

But SPEEDWEEK reports that governing body the FIA has ‘applied the brakes’ to a degree on Ferrari’s 2026 car. There are concerns regarding how ‘aggressive’ the engineers in Maranello have been with the Scuderia’s aero concept, so the FIA will ‘take a closer look’ at the SF-26.

The FIA intends to review Ferrari’s aero concept closely before giving the green light to their design satisfying the 2026 F1 regulations. The governing body has encountered delays with checking each team’s proposals after Jason Somerville quit his role at the end of November.

The FIA has encountered delays reviewing each F1 team’s 2026 aero concepts

What does Fred Vasseur need to do to stay at Ferrari beyond 2026?

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Somerville previously oversaw the reviews for each team’s aero submissions for the FIA. But the Englishman is now believed to be joining Alpine once his gardening leave has concluded. His resignation has since caused the FIA delays in checking each team’s aero ideas for 2026.

Ferrari revealed their very refined engine packaging concept when Hamilton and Leclerc first put the SF-26 on a track during their private shakedown at Fiorano last Friday. The sidepods on the Scuderia’s 2026 car are very compact, but they are not their only clever idea thus far.

The Scuderia are also one of the F1 teams that have integrated a hole in the rear diffuser on their car for the 2026 regulations. F1’s new rules required teams to create more basic floors to reduce downforce, but the opening can increase the speed of the airflow to the diffuser.