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Aston Martin 'on another level' as Lewis Hamilton drops major Ferrari hint – RacingNews365 Review
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Aston Martin 'on another level' as Lewis Hamilton drops major Ferrari hint – RacingNews365 Review

The radical-looking 2026 Aston Martin F1 car has been described as "on another level" with "incredible attention to detail" as the Adrian Newey design turned testing heads. The Honda-powered machine did not head out on track in Spain until late on Thursday, with Lance Stroll completing a handful of slow laps, before veteran Fernando Alonso drove a Newey-designed car for the first time on Friday, completing 49 laps.  READ MORE: Radical Aston Martin 'on another level' as striking Adrian Newey influence clear Lewis Hamilton drops major first hint over 2026 Ferrari F1 car Lewis Hamilton has delivered his verdict on the new generation of F1 cars after topping the Barcelona pre-season shakedown, hinting it could be a return to some of his strengths. Late on the final day of running, Hamilton posted a 1:16.348 to set the quickest time of the week as he looks to bounce back from the horror 2025 season with Ferrari. READ MORE: Lewis Hamilton drops major first hint over 2026 Ferrari F1 car What we learned from F1's Barcelona pre-season shakedown test The first pre-season 'shakedown' test is firmly in the 2026 books as F1 teams prepare to crunch their data and take what learnings they can heading to Bahrain in the middle of February. With the talking finally over and the cars and drivers now speaking for themselves, RacingNews365 takes a look at some of the key things we learned in Barcelona about how the 2026 season could shape up. READ MORE: What we learned from F1's Barcelona pre-season shakedown test Audi facing 'longest ever list' as true scale of F1 challenge unmasked Audi chief Mattia Binotto says he has "never seen such a long list" of issues it must fix after the Barcelona pre-season shakedown. In its first pre-season test in F1, Audi completed 240 laps across the permitted three days of running, but Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto were hampered by niggling problems with the R26 machine, with Bortoleto stopping on track on one occasion. READ MORE: Audi facing 'longest ever list' as true scale of F1 challenge unmasked Max Verstappen pinpoints 'key' to unlocking huge Red Bull 2026 unknown Max Verstappen believes the century of laps he racked up during the final day of F1's Barcelona shakedown will be "key" to helping Red Bull grow its understanding of its new engine. On Friday in Barcelona, Verstappen tallied 118 laps of the track, posting a 1:17.586 as his best effort as Red Bull continues to learn about its new in-house Red Bull Powertrains-Ford engine. READ MORE: Max Verstappen pinpoints 'key' to unlocking huge Red Bull 2026 unknown Racing Bulls deliver early verdict on new Red Bull engine Racing Bulls team principal Alan Permane has praised the new Red Bull power unit, admitting the team is “pleasantly surprised” by its performance. Red Bull has fielded its own power unit this year for the first time, built in collaboration with Ford. READ MORE: Racing Bulls deliver early verdict on new Red Bull engine

Ferrari strike F1-first in new global partnership
racingnews365.com·

Ferrari strike F1-first in new global partnership

Ferrari have secured a groundbreaking collaboration with human performance company WHOOP that promises to revolutionise how Formula 1 teams monitor and optimise its personnel's physical wellbeing. The multi-year agreement, announced today, will see WHOOP become the Official Health and Fitness Wearable Partner and Team Partner from the 2026 season onwards.  The partnership extends far beyond traditional sponsorship arrangements, with the American company's technology being integrated throughout Ferrari's operations to unlock crucial insights into health, recovery, and fitness data. WHOOP's distinctive branding will feature prominently on Ferrari's cars and driver overalls when the new regulations come into effect, whilst team members across the organisation will utilise the company's continuous monitoring devices to track their physiological responses across the season The collaboration represents a first-of-its-kind initiative that will see Ferrari's medical team work directly alongside WHOOP's Performance Science division, headed by Dr. Kristen Holmes, to develop bespoke human optimisation programmes tailored specifically for the unique pressures of F1. "WHOOP and Scuderia Ferrari HP share the same obsession: performance at the edge," explained Will Ahmed, Founder and CEO of WHOOP.  "Scuderia Ferrari HP has spent generations turning data and precision into speed. We've done the same for the human system. Bringing those worlds together is a natural fit, and we're proud to bring this expertise into Formula 1." An F1 first The partnership unites two organisations renowned for their data-driven approaches to achieving excellence at the highest levels of competition.  Ferrari's decades of F1 experience and record-setting legacy have long emphasised the integration of human capability with engineering excellence, making them natural partners for WHOOP's 24/7 continuous health monitoring technology. Beyond the immediate performance benefits, the collaboration aims to produce scientific research that could influence how motorsport approaches human performance management.  "The partnership includes plans to develop a comprehensive research paper documenting the insights gathered through this innovative approach to team wellness and optimisation. "This partnership goes far beyond a logo on the car," stressed Dr. Kristen Holmes, Global Head of Human Performance, Principal Science at WHOOP.  "By embedding WHOOP across the team, we're able to deliver continuous, real-world insights into recovery, sleep, strain, and resilience; giving Scuderia Ferrari HP's drivers, and entire organisation the essential data to adapt faster, manage fatigue, and maintain their wellbeing under the extreme conditions of this sport and pressure."