Ferrari is set to hold a filming day with its F1 2026 car next month following the cancellations of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian grands prix, PlanetF1.com has learned.<\/p>\n
Ferrari has enjoyed a fine start to the F1 2026 season, claiming podiums at the opening two rounds in Australia and China.<\/p>\n
Ferrari planning filming day during F1 2026 April break<\/p>\n
Want more PlanetF1.com coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google<\/a> to your favourites list for news you can trust<\/p>\n Charles Leclerc came home third in Melbourne before Lewis Hamilton equalled the result in Shanghai, claiming his first podium finish since he joined Ferrari at the start of 2025.<\/p>\n It was confirmed last week that the races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia will not take place next month, reducing the F1 2026 calendar to a maximum of 22 races.<\/p>\n It also means no race will take place between the Japanese Grand Prix on March 29 and the Miami Grand Prix on May 3, a gap of five weeks.<\/p>\n Analysis: Chinese Grand Prix<\/p>\n Chinese GP conclusions: Verstappen sabbatical fear, mixed Hamilton feelings, McLaren Powertrains<\/a><\/p>\n Winners and losers from the 2026 Chinese Grand Prix<\/a><\/p>\n PlanetF1.com understands that Ferrari is planning to hold a filming day with its current car, the SF-26, during the upcoming break.<\/p>\n It is believed that Ferrari has not yet utilised any of its two allowed filming days for the F1 2026 season, with the car\u2019s post-launch shakedown at Fiorano in January officially classed as a so-called demonstration event.<\/p>\n As such, it is understood that Ferrari is keen to hold a filming day during the April break to produce more content for its commercial partners, with the team\u2019s offering currently limited to post-launch material from January.<\/p>\n Under F1\u2019s rules, teams are permitted to a maximum of two filming days \u2013 each consisting of 200 kilometres of running \u2013 with current cars per season.<\/p>\n PlanetF1.com understands from sources close to the situation that Ferrari is still evaluating where to hold its filming day despite reports in Italy suggesting it will take place at Monza, the venue of F1\u2019s Italian Grand Prix.<\/p>\n It has been speculated that Monza would be the preferred venue for Ferrari given the circuit\u2019s high demands in terms of energy management for the F1 2026 power units.<\/p>\n As the fastest circuit on the F1 calendar, a filming day at Monza would allow Ferrari to further optimise its new power unit in its bid to close the gap to Mercedes, the winner of the first two races.<\/p>\n Speaking ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix last weekend, Hamilton admitted that Ferrari needs to get to the bottom of Mercedes\u2019 advantage<\/a> on the straights.<\/p>\n Asked where Mercedes\u2019 performance advantage is manifesting itself on track, Hamilton said: \u201cIt seems mostly on straight.<\/p>\n \u201cIt seems more so when they open up the ESM \u2013 that\u2019s when they take a huge step, so whatever\u2019s going in that phase is an area we need to understand.<\/p>\n \u201cThey seem to have a little bit more deployment, so less de-rating at the end of the straights than some of us.<\/p>\n \u201cSo we\u2019ve just got to work on trying to see how we can eke out more from our engine.\u201d<\/p>\n Additional reporting by Mat Coch<\/p>\n Want to be the first to know exclusive information from the F1 paddock? Join our broadcast channel on WhatsApp<\/a> to get the scoop on the latest developments from our team of accredited journalists.<\/p>\n You can also subscribe to the PlanetF1 YouTube channel<\/a> for exclusive features, hear from our paddock journalists with stories from the heart of Formula 1 and much more!<\/p>\n