Leclerc Tops Both Austin Practice Sessions as Ferrari’s Final Upgrade Arrives

Ferrari’s revised SF-26 finished Friday fastest in FP1 and FP2, with Charles Leclerc edging Kimi Antonelli by just 0.042 seconds in the afternoon.

Ferrari brought its expected final major aerodynamic upgrade of 2026 to Austin. Charles Leclerc put it at the top of both Friday practice sessions.

After leading FP1, Leclerc returned with a 1:35.291 in FP2 to finish 0.042 seconds ahead of Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli. Max Verstappen was third, 0.189 seconds behind, while Lewis Hamilton placed the second Ferrari fourth.

That gives Ferrari an encouraging opening to the United States Grand Prix weekend. It also leaves very little room for comfort: Antonelli was within five hundredths of a second.

What Ferrari changed

The Austin package reaches across the floor, sidepods and diffuser, the expanding section at the rear of the floor that helps generate downforce.

In its submission to the FIA, Ferrari described changes intended to increase downforce at both the front and rear of the floor and improve the stability of airflow traveling toward the back of the car. The revised diffuser is designed to make use of that improved flow.

The changes work together. Ferrari is trying to improve how air moves through several connected areas of the SF-26, rather than relying on one isolated component.

Friday’s results are an encouraging first showing for that work. They don’t establish how much lap time the new parts have added; practice standings alone cannot separate the upgrade’s contribution from setup, fuel loads and the programs each team is running.

Two sessions, two close fights

Leclerc’s morning benchmark was 1:36.052, putting him 0.084 seconds ahead of Verstappen and 0.245 ahead of Lando Norris.

Verstappen had gone faster, but his 1:35.862 was deleted for exceeding track limits at Turn 19. Ferrari therefore ended FP1 on top with clear evidence that Red Bull was close.

In FP2, Antonelli became Leclerc’s nearest challenger. Hamilton finished 0.615 seconds behind his teammate, with George Russell fifth.

Leclerc has now led both sessions on the day Ferrari introduced its latest package. The next test is turning that Friday pace into a qualifying result, with Mercedes and Red Bull already close enough to punish a small mistake.