Although some media outlets claim that Lewis Hamilton was faster than Charles Leclerc in Pirelli's tire test in Barcelona, in comparison, Leclerc had the best time of the two days...
While the drivers had been ripping through the wet tyres the previous week, it was now the turn of the 2026 slicks. As usual, Pirelli shared hardly any meaningful information about the event, but the times were published. In fact, they also noted that these should be treated with great caution, which is why the excitement mentioned above is incomprehensible. Although Hamilton did indeed take the lead on the first day of practice, organized with the participation of Scuderia Ferrari and McLaren, based on today's time results - purely statistically - Charles Leclerc can be considered the winner. After different tactics, programs and distances, Leclerc was the fastest at the end of the two days (1:14.971), ahead of Oscar Piastri (1:15.815) and his teammate Lewis Hamilton (1:16.759).
In terms of distance covered, Piastri was the busiest (152 laps), followed by the Ferrari duo, both completing 74 laps. Pirelli has had a productive day, as everyone completed at least one Spanish Grand Prix-worth of laps today. The next round will be in Jerez on the 13th and 14th, where Alpine, Mercedes and McLaren will do the work.
Photo: F1
