Ferrari presses on with Silverstone upgrades despite Austria struggles
Ferrari challenged Mercedes' diffuser and won the FIA ruling, then watched Antonelli and Norris lap them at Austria while building even more new parts for Silverstone.
Ferrari is pushing ahead with yet more upgrades for this weekend's British GP, following disappointing race pace in Austria after Lewis Hamilton's breakthrough Barcelona victory.
The Scuderia is expected to introduce an updated low-downforce 'Macarena' rear wing at Silverstone, along with a revised low-drag diffuser and potentially further exhaust tweaks as it continues developing the 2026 package despite Formula 1's budget cap restrictions.
The continued flow of new parts has left Mercedes boss Toto Wolff scratching his head.
"We're a little surprised that Ferrari can throw such massive upgrades at the car the way they do," he said after Austria.
"Equal rules for everyone... hopefully."
The latest developments come after Ferrari had already introduced the first stage of its ADUO engine upgrade in Austria, but still struggled badly on race day.
German newspaper Bild could not resist pointing out the irony after Ferrari had successfully challenged Mercedes' controversial diffuser design before the weekend.
"Ha, Ferrari!" it wrote. "Mercedes wins. That's what they get."
"The Scuderia had reported Mercedes to the FIA. The accusation: the Silver Arrows' diffuser was illegal."
"The rulemakers agreed with the Italians, and the German team had to modify its cars. Nevertheless, Mercedes celebrates the double podium... while Ferrari only manages fifth (Hamilton) and eighth (Leclerc)."
Rivals react to Ferrari's pace mystery
Championship leader Kimi Antonelli said Ferrari's race pace surprised him for all the wrong reasons.
"They were going really slow and using energy in a strange way," he said.
"On the second lap, at Turn 1, I even risked hitting Leclerc because of the speed difference. I was probably 30kph faster than him."
World champion Lando Norris was equally surprised by Ferrari's lack of pace.
"When you're short on power, you have to push like crazy both on the straights and in the corners, and with these front tyres, that's not possible."
"It must have been a tough race for them," he said.
Ferrari F1 team snapshot
| Constructors' titles | 16 (most recent: 2008) |
|---|---|
| Drivers' titles | 15 (most recent: 2007) |
| F1 debut | 1950 |
| 2026 drivers | Lewis Hamilton & Charles Leclerc |
See also: Ferrari F1 team stats and information on F1-Fansite.
Related: Wolff questions how Ferrari is affording its upgrade blitz
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Looks like zero rain Fri/Sat/Sun should be a good watch, now whether to watch live on C4 or Sky, I think C4 Sky will be bigging up the Brits way to much,I think Crusty might actually wet himself