The first free practice session on the new Madrid circuit was inevitably destined to be mainly a learning phase, but some initial interesting clues seem to already emerge from the data. The Madring has confirmed itself as an extremely complex track to interpret, with fast sections, slow corners, elevation changes, and above all two very particular stretches like the Monumental and the Snake, which seem to require very different characteristics from the car.
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Ferrari aggressive with energy in the first part of the lap
One of the most evident elements concerns energy management. Ferrari, like Audi, used a particularly aggressive strategy in the first part of the lap, with a very significant use of the electric component up to turn 5. Mercedes, on the other hand, showed a decidedly more conservative approach in the same section. This behavior was not only apparent in the fast lap but was essentially found in all runs during the session.
The SF-26 also seemed competitive at the Monumental. Leclerc performs a slight lift only on entry, like everyone else, then gets back on the throttle and practically takes the entire long corner at full throttle, even continuing to accelerate. An almost counterintuitive dynamic that we saw in the data of almost everyone and that tells of a truly complicated and demanding section to drive and manage on the car. During the early phases of the free practice, Mercedes even tended to cap power from mid-corner onwards to save energy on an evidently conservative map. In any case, in the entry section to this complicated corner and through it, it is noticeable how both drivers and engineers are searching for the right compromise between corner entry sacrifice, energy saving, and the best line.
With this whole first part so pushed, at the exit of the Monumental Leclerc even gains almost four tenths over Russell. From that moment, however, the comparison changes completely.
Mercedes changes pace after the Monumental
At turn 15 Russell carries about 9 km/h more through the corner, while Ferrari already seems forced to recover energy. Even in the Snake, Mercedes appears particularly effective, with differences in the order of 7-10 km/h compared to Leclerc’s car. In the slow and twisty final section comes the heaviest blow to the stopwatch, especially in traction, with Charles leaving over half a second overall in the third sector. Mercedes therefore seemed to have more energy available than Ferrari, but also perhaps a slightly softer setup, which guarantees better performance in the slow sections but forces drivers to slow down a bit in the second part of the Monumental to avoid the compression pushing the car too low.
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Leclerc collapses at the end even compared to Hamilton: ADUO or tire?
Also interesting is the internal Ferrari comparison. Leclerc finished ahead of Hamilton in the session standings, but the ideal lap tells a different story: putting together the best sectors, Lewis would have been over two tenths faster than his teammate and would have also preceded Antonelli, second at the end of FP1. However, Hamilton encountered a lot of traffic and practically never managed to complete a clean lap.
Finally, there is a detail worth following in FP2. With soft tires, Leclerc clearly dominates the first half of the lap compared to Hamilton, but from the exit of the Monumental onwards it is Lewis who definitely has more performance, even in the straight. The hypotheses, for now, are at least two: Leclerc’s soft tire might have overheated too much, losing performance precisely in the second half of the lap, or we might see the difference in the amount of available energy, possibly also linked to the different ADUO specifications mounted on the two Ferraris. It is too early to give an answer, but in both cases, it would be a particularly interesting indication for qualifying.
The second free practice session, with a more rubbered-in track and more representative programs, should start to tell us more.
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