Following Ferrari’s disappointing weekend at the Miami Grand Prix, Karun Chandhok and David Croft discuss: F1 show Find out in the podcast whether the Italian team’s 2026 season is in trouble.
Expectations were high for Ferrari as they brought a major upgrade package to Miami after F1’s enforced five-week break, but the results were disappointing.
McLaren’s upgrade package had a further significant impact as the reigning constructor’s champion dominated the sprint event before Kimi Antonelli won the grand prix for Mercedes. This is an ominous result considering the Silver Arrows have postponed major car changes until the next round in Canada.
There were extenuating circumstances that contributed to Lewis Hamilton’s sixth and Charles Leclerc’s eighth place finishes in the race, but Ferrari’s overall form raised doubts about its ability to compete for the title this season.
Sky Sports F1 “If it’s a big upgrade for Ferrari at the start of the season, McLaren and Mercedes won’t be worried,” Chandhok said.
“Miami should have been the weekend that put them ahead. I feel like they fell behind.
“For me there should be some concerns at Maranello and Ferrari.”
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2026 Miami Grand Prix highlights.
Leclerc would finish fourth before spinning and clipping the barrier on the penultimate lap, while Hamilton drove almost the entire race with damage from an early collision with Alpine’s Franco Colapinto.
While McLaren is understood to be bringing another set of upgrades to Canada, it’s unclear whether Ferrari is planning something similar or will have to wait until later in the season for another significant package.
Chandok continued: “They need to think about whether they can optimize or unlock additional performance in this update, because otherwise they’ll be left behind when McLaren adds bits that we believe will come to Canada and Mercedes gets its big upgrade.”
Is this a problem with small turbo Ferraris?
Ferrari’s biggest strength in the opening round was its fast start. Leclerc produced another superb getaway to take the lead for Miami.
Hamilton was also in a position to gain a number of places at the start before being seriously hindered by Max Verstappen spinning in front of him.
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Ted Kravitz takes an in-depth look at all the upgrades made by McLaren, Mercedes, Red Bull and Ferrari ahead of the Miami GP.
Ferrari’s quick getaways are said to be aided by the turbo section of the powerplant, which is smaller than those produced by rivals Mercedes and Red Bull.
While the powerplant certainly helped Ferrari initially, Hamilton said on several occasions that his lack of power compared to his rivals was making life difficult throughout the course of the race.
Sky Sports F1 David Croft said: “I don’t know what it’s like with Ferrari – those little turbos are great in the opening laps, but they’re burning through fuel with the other cars so they don’t have the advantage of those little turbos and they’re at a disadvantage?
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Watch the opening lap of the Miami Grand Prix as Charles Leclerc takes the lead, Max Verstappen spins and Lewis Hamilton suffers damage.
“Could Lewis Hamilton have been more capable without losing all that downforce early on?
“I hope there’s another upgrade package ready somewhere in Maranello that works a little better, otherwise we’re going to have problems.”
Formula 1 next heads to Montreal for the Canadian Grand Prix and another sprint weekend. Watch live on Sky Sports F1 from 22-24 May. Stream Sky Sports NOW – No Commitment, Cancel Anytime
