Ferrari setup issues hurt Hamilton’s points over last five races
NXTbets Pro | Published On: October 28, 2026
Ferrari pace falters
Ferrari arrived in Austin with the fastest car in practice, then left with the same qualifying questions that have followed it all season. The team topped all three practice sessions at the United States Grand Prix, and Lewis Hamilton led the way in final practice with a 1:34.893 lap. The SF-26 looked strong all weekend. That speed did not carry into qualifying. Ferrari ended up fourth and fifth, with Charles Leclerc fourth and Hamilton fifth. That result fit a recurring pattern for the team this season, strong practice pace, a weaker run in the final qualifying session and a race recovery that arrives after the front of the field has already pulled away. Fred Vasseur said Ferrari is not lacking fundamental pace. He said the team is losing the crucial time when it matters most. He pointed to execution in qualifying and said small mistakes or tire-window issues can drop a car several places. Austin made that problem plain. Ferrari had the speed to lead practice, but it did not turn that into the grid position it needed.
Hamilton setup concerns
Hamilton put the focus on setup. He said Ferrari repeatedly under-hit the car’s balance across the weekend, and he said he was still too far from the setup he needed until the final stint. That has become the source of his frustration. Hamilton said he lost a lot of points over the last five races because of Ferrari setup issues, and he cited the United States Grand Prix and Singapore as examples. His comments matched Vasseur’s view from the garage. Ferrari has enough pace to stay in the fight, but the balance is not landing in the right place soon enough in the weekend. The team keeps chasing the setup instead of building on it. That makes qualifying harder, because the car can look healthy in practice without being right when the field tightens and every lap counts. It also leaves the drivers in recovery mode before the race even starts. Hamilton’s Austin weekend showed that split clearly. Ferrari had the speed to contend, but the setup window did not open early enough to turn that speed into a stronger result.
Leclerc qualifying cost
Leclerc’s second place gave Ferrari a better view of what the weekend could have produced with cleaner qualifying. He finished behind Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli after passing Max Verstappen in the closing laps, and he and Vasseur both said a better third qualifying session cost Ferrari victory chances. That is what makes Austin matter beyond the points. Ferrari is making concept decisions for next year’s car, so the weekend fed directly into a bigger question about the direction of the package. The team knows the baseline speed is there. It knows the race pace can keep it close enough to fight at the front. What it keeps missing is the piece that turns practice speed into a front-row or second-row start and gives it a cleaner path to a win. Austin sharpened that lesson. Ferrari had a car fast enough to lead practice and run at the front, but qualifying left it too much ground to recover. Until that changes, the team will keep relying on race pace to fix problems that start on Saturday.
