Lewis Hamilton has once again pointed out a rarely discussed performance gap at Ferrari: tyre management. The British driver believes the team could do better in an area he considers crucial.
The 2026 season has not been smooth for Ferrari. In Madrid, Hamilton retired early with a brake problem, while Charles Leclerc finished fourth and Andrea Kimi Antonelli took victory for Mercedes. As a result, Ferrari's gap to Mercedes in the standings widened further.
Hamilton has been vocal in demanding improvements from all corners. His win in Barcelona earlier in the season provided a boost, but he wants Maranello to perform consistently. Ahead of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, he shared the outcome of his discussions with the engineers. "I spoke with the engineers, going over what we've done well and where we may have made mistakes or missed things," he said.
The SF-26 is known for its competitive chassis on many circuits, but has been hampered by a power unit that lacks performance compared to Mercedes. However, when asked if that is the main area to chase, Hamilton pointed to another aspect.
"I think when people are watching, they probably don't think too much in depth about the tyres," he said. "And I think the tyres are the things that deliver a huge amount of performance if you believe it or not. That's a science in itself, so I think that's an area that we could do better and I think could deliver quite a bit of performance."
This statement highlights the importance of tyre understanding in the still-new 2026 regulations. Teams that can manage tyre temperatures and degradation well will have a significant advantage, especially on street circuits like Baku.
Ferrari clearly cannot rely solely on its chassis. With Mercedes performing strongly, they need to find solutions quickly. Hamilton hopes improvements in the tyre area will be felt soon, starting this weekend in Azerbaijan.
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