Author Archives: PressBox

Ferrari introduced a major eight-component aerodynamic upgrade package to its SF-26 at the Barcelona Grand Prix aimed at boosting performance and closing the gap to Mercedes. The package was the largest of any team at the weekend and represented a broad aerodynamic revision rather than a single targeted tweak.

The upgrades centered on an evolved front wing and a redesigned nose with a raised lower surface, and included a revised footplate with different vane placement plus a new dive plane on the endplate. Ferrari also revised the floor, diffuser and sidepods as part of the set. The team said the changes were intended to improve aerodynamic load distribution, cut turbulence over the front tyres, increase downforce and make the car easier to balance by managing airflow, reducing wake and directing cleaner flow to the rear.

Ferrari introduced the package at Barcelona after an encouraging performance in Monaco and as a follow-up to a previous development step at the Miami Grand Prix in early May, which had not stopped Mercedes maintaining an early-season advantage. Barcelona was treated as an important development benchmark because its mix of low, medium and high-speed corners and the weekend’s three practice sessions on a permanent circuit allowed teams to compare new parts. Several other teams also brought updates, including Mercedes, Red Bull, McLaren, Williams, Racing Bulls, Haas and Cadillac. Lewis Hamilton said, “Ferrari’s innovation has been encouraging.”

Formula 1 has appointed Fever as its new ticketing operator in a five-year partnership beginning in 2027, giving Fever responsibility for a revamped global ticketing platform designed to modernize how fans search for, buy and manage tickets. The new system will launch with the 2027 season and run through 2031 on Formula 1’s website and digital channels.

F1 said the platform will cover general admission tickets, venue-specific hospitality and the series-wide Paddock Club. Chief commercial officer Emily Prazer said the deal is intended to make the consumer journey more seamless and improve the fan experience, and F1 said the overhaul reflects a renewed focus on digital ticketing infrastructure as its global audience continues to grow. F1 also said only a small portion of its supporters will ever attend races in person.

The move ends Platinium Group’s run as F1’s ticketing operator after more than a decade and marks the first major ticketing operator change for the series in more than ten years. Fever said the agreement expands its presence in racing and builds on existing work with Formula 1, including its involvement at the Spanish Grand Prix and a separate agreement tied to Ifema Madrid through 2035. Fever also works with E1, SailGP and LIV Golf.

Formula 1 said it remained on track to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2030 after cutting its carbon footprint 35% from its 2018 baseline. The latest verified sustainability report put total emissions at 148,805 tCO2e in 2025, down from 168,720 in 2024 and 228,793 in 2018. The figures cover F1 operations, team factories, race operations and travel.

The sport said the gains came from a mix of changes across freight, logistics, broadcasting, race operations and energy use at factories and facilities. Emissions at team factories were down 64% from 2018, logistics emissions fell 29%, and event-operations emissions dropped 6% even as the calendar expanded to 24 races. F1 said travel-related emissions declined by more than 21,000 tCO2e, and emissions from factories, facilities and offices fell by more than 37,000 tCO2e after teams moved to renewable energy. Renewable power has now been used at all European races for paddock operations, and the 2026 cars are running on fully sustainable fuel while using roughly one-third less fuel per race.

F1 also said its sustainability push has included greater use of sustainable aviation fuel, the first deployment of sustainable maritime fuel, reduced freight and more remote operations. CEO Stefano Domenicali said the results reflected collective action across the sport, and head of ESG Ellen Jones said the Future Race Operations Program and calendar rationalization were key to further cuts. F1 expects more reductions from regional hubs, calendar changes beginning in 2026 and a plan to move half of broadcast-related freight out of air transport by 2030, with more than half of current broadcast and related freight expected to shift off air transport by then. The championship said its net-zero target still depends on at least a 50% absolute emissions cut from 2018 levels, with remaining unavoidable emissions to be offset.

Mercedes has formally sought a Right of Review from the FIA over George Russell’s Monaco Grand Prix penalty, arguing that new evidence from the pit-lane measurement error and the later reversal of Pierre Gasly’s sanction could affect Russell’s result and championship points. Russell was penalized for pit-lane speeding, then received a drive-through penalty after the original punishment was not served correctly, a sequence that dropped him out of the points and ended his race in 12th place. Mercedes says it is pursuing the case for Russell’s benefit, even though team principal Toto Wolff said the team does not expect it to succeed.

The appeal centers on the same Monaco pit-lane measurement issue that led Alpine to overturn Gasly’s penalties. Stewards acknowledged the pit lane had been measured too short, with one account saying it was 77 meters short, and the error affected five drivers in total. Gasly’s penalties were rescinded and his result was restored to third, his first podium since November 2024. Mercedes is arguing that the Gasly ruling provides grounds to revisit Russell’s case, though stewards must first decide whether the evidence is genuinely new, relevant and significant. The FIA has confirmed the review process has begun, but Mercedes still has filings to complete before the case can move forward.

Wolff said Mercedes wanted clarity and a seat at the table when such decisions are made, but also warned that reopening a penalty already served during the race would be difficult under the sporting regulations. He said the team had missed the 96-hour appeal window and believed the matter could open a can of worms if it created a broader precedent. Red Bull and McLaren have also signaled appeals or possible appeals over the Gasly ruling, and McLaren’s Oscar Piastri said he was mind-blown that only Gasly’s penalty had been overturned. Red Bull said it wanted clarity on how in-race penalties that are not appealable should be handled, turning the Monaco dispute into a wider debate over fairness and race governance.

Leonardo Fornaroli is set for another step in his Formula 1 climb this week, with Haas scheduled to run the 21-year-old McLaren reserve driver in a two-day Testing of Previous Cars session at Jerez on Wednesday and Thursday. The test, which will use Haas’s VF-25, is being treated by the team as an appraisal of Fornaroli and a chance for him to build more F1 mileage. Haas reserve driver Ryo Hirakawa is also expected to take part.

The Jerez outing comes as Fornaroli’s profile rises after a rapid run through the junior categories. He won back-to-back Formula 3 and Formula 2 titles in 2024 and 2025, putting him in a small group of drivers to achieve the same feat as Charles Leclerc, George Russell, Oscar Piastri and Gabriel Bortoleto. He has already done Testing of Previous Car runs for McLaren at Silverstone and the Circuit of the Americas, and McLaren does not have an obvious opening for him in 2027 because Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri are both on long-term contracts.

Fornaroli’s recent McLaren debut in Formula 1 practice at Barcelona added to the interest around him. He drove Lando Norris’s car in FP1, finished fifth fastest, and was praised by McLaren for his pace and professionalism. Team principal Andrea Stella said Fornaroli’s speed, consistency and professionalism made him an asset for the future, and said McLaren is working to find him a race seat. The Haas test now gives him another opportunity to strengthen his case for a Formula 1 drive.

Charles Leclerc says he needs to be fighting at the front with Lewis Hamilton after a difficult Spanish Grand Prix weekend in Barcelona, and Martin Brundle warned that the Ferrari driver must respond in the next two races at Austria and Silverstone to stop Hamilton becoming Ferrari’s clear team leader. Leclerc said it was up to him to “up my game” after a Q3 crash left him 10th on the grid. He recovered to sixth before a BBW (brake-by-wire) failure left him without power steering in Turn 2 and forced him to retire. He said his biggest mistake was qualifying poorly, added that he wants cleaner events, and said he hopes to rebound at the Austrian Grand Prix. Leclerc has failed to finish his last two races.

Hamilton, meanwhile, extended his momentum with a dominant win for Ferrari at the Spanish Grand Prix, his record-extending 106th Formula 1 victory. He used a flawless three-stop strategy to finish nearly 20 seconds ahead of George Russell, while Kimi Antonelli’s retirement left Mercedes short of a stronger result. Ferrari’s win was its first Grand Prix defeat of Mercedes this season. Hamilton’s points lead over Leclerc now stands at 115 to 75. Leclerc said he credited Hamilton and the team for earning the victory on their own, and he said the virtual safety car likely helped Hamilton’s strategy, though he did not think it would have changed his own result much.

Piero Ferrari said Leclerc’s Spanish Grand Prix weekend was hurt by the qualifying mistake and the power steering failure, but said he has strong confidence in Leclerc’s ability. He said he expects Leclerc to rebound strongly after Barcelona and that the Monegasque driver will remain a major contender in the 2026 title fight. Piero Ferrari also said Leclerc’s switch to Carbone Industries brake parts was an improvement.