Ferrari appeared to have the pace to challenge for pole position at the United States Grand Prix, but a slight change in track conditions proved enough to derail its qualifying ambitions at Austin.
After topping all three free practice sessions at the Circuit of the Americas, Ferrari entered qualifying with genuine expectations of securing at least one front-row starting position.
Instead, Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton finished fourth and fifth respectively, leaving the Italian team frustrated after failing to convert its promising practice performance into a stronger qualifying result.
Team principal Fred Vasseur acknowledged the disappointment but refused to use changing track conditions as an excuse.
Leclerc Points to Small Temperature Change
Leclerc identified a slight drop in track temperature between Q2 and Q3 as a significant factor behind Ferrari’s loss of competitiveness.
According to the Monegasque, a change of just one or two degrees was enough to dramatically affect the behaviour of his SF-26.
“We lost one or two degrees of track temperature, and for us, it made a huge difference. From the out-lap, I could feel that I was struggling a lot,” Leclerc explained.
The Ferrari driver was particularly disappointed that the problem emerged during the decisive phase of qualifying, when he believed the car had the potential to challenge at the front.
“It’s a shame that it happened in Q3 because I’m convinced we had the pace to fight at the front. But unfortunately, not today. Once again.”
Vasseur Refuses to Blame the Conditions
While Vasseur shared his driver’s frustration, the Ferrari team principal was unwilling to attribute the result solely to external factors.
He pointed out that the changing conditions affected every team, making it essential for Ferrari to improve its execution rather than search for excuses.
“I think Q2 was a little quicker for everyone. We all struggled to improve in Q3, perhaps because of the wind or something else. But it was the same for everyone. We can’t complain about the wind. That would be nonsense.”
Vasseur remained convinced that Ferrari possessed the performance required to secure a much stronger starting position.
“We need to do a better job on the final lap because we had the potential to be at least on the front row. Until the final corner, we were fighting for pole position.”
His assessment underlined the frustration within Ferrari after a qualifying session in which the team failed to capitalise on the competitiveness it had demonstrated throughout the weekend.
Ferrari Looks to Race Day for Redemption
Despite the disappointing result, Vasseur believes Sunday’s race could present a different challenge.
Tyre degradation is expected to play a significant role at the Circuit of the Americas, potentially influencing the competitive order over the race distance.
“Tomorrow will be a different exercise, a difficult one, with a lot of degradation. We’ll see what happens.”
The Ferrari team principal was left with mixed feelings after qualifying, recognising both the improvements shown by the SF-26 and the missed opportunity to secure a front-row start.
With Leclerc fourth and Hamilton fifth, Ferrari must now translate its promising pace into a stronger result on race day.
The team has demonstrated renewed competitiveness in Austin, but converting that potential into results remains the challenge.
