Gary Anderson thinks ‘confused’ Ferrari might already have a ‘problem’ with their 2026 F1 car

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Ferrari are under increasing pressure to deliver with their 2026 Formula 1 car, but technical expert Gary Anderson already has reservations based on rumours that have surfaced ahead of pre-season testing.

The 2025 Formula 1 season is not a campaign that Ferrari will look back on fondly after failing to win a Grand Prix.

Charles Leclerc achieved all seven Ferrari podiums last year, with Lewis Hamilton’s highlights almost exclusively coming during Sprint Races.

Ferrari have already received positive feedback about their engine from new competitors, Cadillac, following their shakedown at Silverstone.

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However, the strength of their power unit is only going to play a small part in how competitive the SF-26 is compared to its rivals.

Gary Anderson has now been speaking about a fundamental part of the car that can often be overlooked by fans: the suspension.

According to MARCA, Ferrari are rumoured to have switched from a pull-rod front suspension to a push-rod system.

Audi have made a similar change to their suspension, but Anderson is concerned by Ferrari’s decision-making.

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Gary Anderson concerned about Ferrari’s suspension ahead of the 2026 F1 season

Anderson was speaking about the situation on The Race F1 Podcast and explained: “It’s a difficult decision, really, to make.

“I personally, if I were making it, would be going for the pull-rod because I think it’s more complicated to package, being that it’s down in the bottom of the chassis.

“But you can package it in such a way that it’s sort of forward of the pedals, I suppose you might call it, or down the side of where the pedal pivots are.

“I think the initial decision of a lot of them going to push-rod at the front would be packaging and ease of setup.

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“But I’m glad to see that Cadillac have gone for the pull-rod and you’ve got to commit to these things because you’ve got to learn about it on the way and if you keep changing from one to the other you never quite get the best out of anything.

“That’s the problem. So, Ferrari, for example, if they have gone from the pull-rod to the push-rod, they’ve gone through that cycle many, many times in the past decade or two decades.

“It’s about being confused, then. I think really it’s one of those situations, once you get yourself into a situation where you have a layout that functions, stick with it and optimise it all the time, rather than just changing direction again and losing yourself for a little while.”

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Loic Serra considering copying McLaren approach with 2026 Ferrari Formula 1 car

After the likes of Enrico Cardile left Ferrari to join Aston Martin, the responsibility for designing the 2026 F1 car has been given to Loic Serra.

Serra, who used to work alongside Hamilton at Mercedes, wasn’t initially responsible for the SF-25, but did have a say when it came to any in-season developments.

However, with the rule changes being introduced this year, Serra’s job is arguably even more difficult, as he has no basis with which to begin designing the SF-26, whereas he could have looked at what wasn’t working with last year’s car and brought forward a new plan.

There have been suggestions that Serra is keen to copy McLaren’s approach with Ferrari’s new car.

He won’t have any idea what McLaren’s 2026 machine looks like, but Rob Marshall and Prodromou have been brave with their decision-making, which has led to the Woking-based team winning back-to-back championships.

This also falls in line with what Anderson is saying, as he believes Ferrari should stick to their guns, rather than always trying to chase performance with radical changes.

Fans will only find out once the car is on track in Bahrain what decision Serra has made with their suspension.