When Charles Leclerc first grappled with the early digital ghosts of the Ferrari SF-26 in a simulator last July, his verdict was far from glowing.
Fearful that Formula 1’s 2026 technical reset – with its heavy reliance on electrical energy – would sanitize the thrill of the cockpit, the Monegasque driver was a vocal skeptic.
But as the sun dipped over the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on Thursday, the narrative began to shift. Emerging from a relentless 89-lap dry-weather session, Leclerc looked less like a man resigned to a "less enjoyable" era and more like a driver invigorated by a complex puzzle.
The fears of a sterile driving experience have been replaced by the intellectual and physical demands of a car that requires a total "outside the box" recalibration.
The Learning Curve
Leclerc’s journey from simulator skeptic to track-side enthusiast has been swift. After a rain-soaked debut on Tuesday, Thursday provided the first true canvas for the SF-26 to show its colors in normal conditions.
For Leclerc, the complexity of managing a car where 50% of the power is derived from the electrical engine is no longer a chore, but a professional rebirth.
"It's super interesting," Leclerc admitted following his marathon run. "It's the first day for me in the car in normal conditions, so a lot to learn, a lot to discover and it's a very different car to what we've been driving since I arrived in Formula 1.
“I take that as a challenge and I actually quite like that everything is new and then there might be an opportunity for us drivers to think outside the box."
©Ferrari
The transition hasn't been without its hurdles, but the innate "F1 feel" remains.
"I definitely feel more and more comfortable. It remains an F1 car as well in a way, it's not like I was completely lost when I got back into the car and I was at ease quite quickly," he added.
"With these new systems and obviously with 50% of the power that comes from the electrical engine, it makes it quite a bit more challenging to manage that, so the learning curve is quite steep. But it's very interesting."
A ‘Massive’ Checklist
Despite the positive vibes and the mounting lap counts, Leclerc warns that the true pecking order remains hidden in the Mediterranean haze.
With one day of the Barcelona shakedown remaining, the focus is firmly on the process rather than the stopwatch.
©Ferrari
"In terms of performance, I have no idea where we are and it's just a huge question mark. There's nothing that tells me, 'okay, we are more or less here or here'," Leclerc concluded.
"But in terms of checklists of the things we wanted to go through, we kind of are on time with our programme, so that's good.
“The checklist is massive, still, so there are still many, many things that we want to test and try differently, whether it's some set-up on the car, some different things or some approaches that we have with this new system."
For the Monegasque, the journey is only beginning, but the direction has shifted. What started as apprehension is evolving into appreciation, and perhaps soon into advantage for those quickest to adapt.
For Leclerc, the new generation may yet prove not less enjoyable, but differently rewarding – a challenge that invites him, rather than deters him, to think outside the box.
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