Charles Leclerc has told Ferrari that it must continue to be "aggressive" in F1's new era of upgrade war.
Towards the end of the ground effects era in 2025, teams began to plateau in terms of performance boost from upgrades as the law of diminishing returns took over after four seasons of the regulations.
For 2026, the chassis were overhauled, as was the manner in which cars generate their downforce, with the wings once again playing a stronger role as opposed to the floor in the ground effects regulations.
The immaturity of the regulations allows for teams to bring huge upgrades on a more frequent basis as there is greater area in which to find performance boosts, with Leclerc's Ferrari being the most aggressive with big packages in Miami and Barcelona, and a new engine in Austria.
Reflecting over a tough Hungarian GP in which Ferrari flattered to deceive and could only manage fourth and fifth with Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton, in opposition to pre-event expectations of contending for victory, the Monegasque described a "strange" feeling with the SF-26, and told Ferrari it must not relent in the upgrade arms race.
The team is 72 points behind constructors' championship leaders Mercedes heading into the summer break, with Hamilton second in the drivers', 59 points behind Kimi Antonelli.
"We paid the price [in the Hungarian GP], with the start; however, we weren't particularly stellar at any point in the race," Leclerc told media, including RacingNews365.
"The first stint on hards wasn't too bad, the last stint on the soft was pretty good, but there were too many ups and downs, and that is where we need to work: to try and find that consistency with this car.
"It has been very tricky on some stints for Lewis and some others with me; it is just a little bit strange how uncorrelated everything is.
"Upgrades are so much more significant than in the past, because it allows us to make such big steps forward, so it is going to be important that we stay on top of it, and keep being aggressive as we have been with the development programme."
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