Hamilton logs 297 laps in Ferrari’s intense wet‑tire test ahead of F1’s return

Formula 1 may not have any official races or sessions scheduled this April, but the sport hasn’t slowed down. While teams and officials continue reviewing the next set of regulations — with safety as a central focus — the cars are still turning laps on track… just in a very different way.

With a rare five‑week break in the calendar, Pirelli has launched a series of tire tests. Red Bull and Racing Bulls kicked things off right after the Japanese Grand Prix, running experimental compounds from the Italian supplier. And one week later, it was Lewis Hamilton’s turn — this time behind the wheel of a Ferrari.

Hamilton takes charge at Fiorano

The seven‑time world champion led two full days of testing at Ferrari’s Fiorano circuit, driving the SF‑26 while teammate Charles Leclerc stayed on simulator duty. Hamilton’s assignment was clear: run exclusively on wet‑weather tires.

Ferrari even joked on social media about the “perfect conditions for another test day,” posting video of a bright, sunny sky. The water? That came from Fiorano’s built‑in sprinkler system, which allowed the team to create a consistently soaked track surface for controlled wet‑weather testing.

Under those conditions, Hamilton completed an intense workload — 142 laps on day one and 155 on day two, totaling 884 kilometers. The program included extreme‑wet compounds before transitioning to intermediates. His fastest lap, a 1:00.740 on day two, wasn’t the focus; the goal was gathering data for Pirelli rather than chasing performance.

Next up: Mercedes and McLaren

These first sessions with the 2027 prototype tires wrapped up on Friday, but the testing program is far from over. Next week, Mercedes and McLaren will take over — with a change of scenery.

On April 14–15, Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, George Russell, and Kimi Antonelli, the current championship leader, will run at the legendary Nürburgring.

The German circuit, which won’t return to the Formula 1 calendar, replaces the originally planned Bahrain test from late February. Pirelli selected the Nürburgring because its layout offers a balanced mix of lateral and longitudinal loads — ideal for tire development.

The ongoing conflict in the Middle East has reshaped not only the Grand Prix schedule but the broader F1 testing calendar as well. Still, one way or another, the show keeps moving.

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