Hamilton reckons Ferrari ‘still a chunk off’ in Barcelona

It was a strange, complicated Friday for Ferrari at the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton, who sat out the first session to allow Dino Beganovic to take the wheel, found himself ninth in FP2 and trailing the benchmark set by Lando Norris by 1.2 seconds. Charles Leclerc managed a P4 finish, but the team's significant upgrade package—featuring a new front wing, floor, sidepods, and diffuser—left Hamilton feeling that Ferrari remains "quite a chunk off" the front-runners.

Hamilton’s time in the cockpit was hampered by high temperatures and a car that didn't feel right, noting that he had "zero feel" for the new parts. While team boss Fred Vasseur described the day as "odd" for the field, he pointed to the high tyre degradation as a key hurdle to overcome. Vasseur remains focused on the data, confirming that Leclerc had no issues with the new brake setup following the changes made after Monaco. It is a tough position to be in, but the team hopes to close the gap when the track conditions improve tomorrow.