F1 drivers reflect on the one-day test driving the mule cars for the 2026 Pirelli tyres, while young guns speak on their outing in the 2025 car.
After a grueling 2025 season, the F1 teams and drivers were in action for one last day of testing in Abu Dhabi at Yas Marina circuit. As many as 25 drivers were out on track where 15 drove the mule car to run the 2026 compounds, while 10 youngsters had their time in the 2025 machinery.
There was no rest for even the 2025 F1 champion with Lando Norris driving for McLaren in the morning session before handing to teammate Oscar Piastri. Likewise Ferrari had both its regular drivers along with Williams, Haas and Sauber – although Esteban Ocon’s time was cut short due to engine issue.
Mercedes, Red Bull, Alpine and Visa Cash App RB elected to run one of their regular drivers, with the likes of George Russell, Max Verstappen and Franco Colapinto missing out. For Aston Martin, both Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll missed out, giving chance to Stoffel Vandoorne.
All of them got the basic idea of the behaviour of the 2026 compounds, which is crucial in their preparation for the new season. Some even ran parts on the mule car which will be a feature in next year’s car to collect as much data for them to work through it during the winter.
Both Red Bull and Visa Cash App RB continued using the Honda engine, as Aston Martin did with Mercedes and Sauber did Ferrari. They all will only get their first taste of RBPT/Ford, Honda and Audi power units – respectively – in private shakedown (if they do) or in Barcelona running.
Among the young drivers’, most F1 teams largely ran the ones who have undertaken FP1 outings with them or elsewhere. Haas’ Ryo Hirakawa had an incident early on but managed to return to the track, while Sauber featured Alpine reserve Paul Aron, after the French team had Kush Maini in the car.
The Indian got his first taste of a F1 car in an official session and became only the third after Narain Karthikeyan and Karun Chandhok to do so. Visa Cash App RB, meanwhile, ran its 2026 driver Arvid Lindblad in the car, but his day was slightly short after running into issues.
Mule car runners –
Lando Norris: “It was great to get back out in our Championship-winning car for one last time this year. We worked through the Pirelli testing programme well, giving them valuable feedback to help set us up as well as possible for 2026. Thank you to everyone for their work this year, now it’s time for a rest before we go again.”
Oscar Piastri: “It was nice to hop back in the MCL39 for one more afternoon after a really successful season. It’s always good to support Pirelli and give feedback on the tyres, as well as getting a good feel for them. It’s been a busy year, so thank you to the team for their continued work. We now rest, reset and then get our heads into what will be an exciting 2026.”
Andrea Kimi Antonelli: “I am happy with our day’s work here in Abu Dhabi. It all went very smoothly, and we were able to complete nearly 160 laps of running. That is valuable data that we have gathered about the 2026 tyres that we will evaluate and utilise ahead of next season. I want to say a massive thank you to the whole team, both here trackside and those colleagues at the factories in Brackley and Brixworth too, for all their hard work. Even though we’ve just finished this year, and my own rookie season, I can’t wait to get started on what is ahead. We’ve got a big few months ahead of us with the exciting challenge that next year presents and it’s one all of us are looking forward to.”
Charles Leclerc: “It was a very positive test day: we had a lot of things to try and it was fundamental to work on the tyres to start understanding them. Everything we learned will go with us into next year. It’s the last day of this season, but at the same time the first of the next. Thank you so much to everyone for the support you gave me this year. See you next year!”
Lewis Hamilton: “We tested the new tyres today to help us gain a better understanding of how they will perform. We worked through our programme, made some good findings, and overall it was a very positive day. I’m really grateful to everyone in the garage for pushing through this extra day of testing, which is not easy at the end of a long season.”
Isack Hadjar: “It was great to get my first laps in as an official Oracle Red Bull Racing driver. It’s nice to know that I’ll be able to come back in January and already have met and worked with more of the Team, having met a lot already through testing over the last couple of years. They welcomed me really well and I already feel comfortable with this group. Of course, this is a totally different car to the one I will be driving in Barcelona but it was good to get a feel of the tyres. It’s also important to bank the data now and it’ll definitely help over the coming months as we build towards the new season.”
Liam Lawson: “It’s been an interesting day whereby we tried to get some advances for 2026. We also had the opportunity to test the new tyres in a window that’s as close as possible to what we’ll have next year, so this will give us some important data to take forward. It’s a very different feeling compared to what we’ve been driving this season, so it’s always good to have a first taste ahead of time. The winter break will give me some time to think about what I’ve just driven before coming back next year with the new car, which I’m looking forward to.”
Stoffel Vandoorne: “It’s always valuable to get back in the car and contribute to the team’s development. Today was focused on understanding the characteristics of the 2026 Pirelli tyres, and we were able to complete a full programme with plenty of representative running. The tyres behave differently to the current compounds, so getting an early read on them is important. I hope the team will be pleased with the data we’re bringing back to the factory as we look ahead to next season.”
Pierre Gasly: “That rounds off our on-track running for 2025. We did a lot of laps today with the 2026 Pirelli tyres which is definitely important to do and gives us plenty of things to look at over the winter. It has been a long year for all of us. Some highs, probably too many lows, but that is how it goes and I know we will come back stronger in 2026. I know everyone is ready for a rest, me included, but we have a few more weeks of hard work before the break and everyone at the factory is putting in huge amounts of effort ahead of next season. Thanks to everyone at the team for their incredible dedication and effort, especially at these busy past few weeks.”
Young drivers’ –
Pato O’Ward: “It’s always a great day when you get to drive a Formula 1 car. Having had a successful session in FP1 last week, it was good to be able to keep building on that. We worked through our plan well, making good progress and continuing to learn more and more. Thank you to the team for this opportunity, it’s been another brilliant day.”
Frederik Vesti: “That is the Young Driver Test complete and, at 145 laps, the most running I’ve ever done in an F1 car in one day! We worked through eight sets of tyres and completed our whole programme. It’s been a positive day with lots of good work accomplished by the team. I was in the simulator last week, got to drive the car today, and will be in the simulator next week so that is useful for my own learning but also the wider work we are doing in the virtual world. We now move on to 2026 which will be such an exciting year for everyone. I have been working hard with colleagues at Brackley on the development of next season’s car and I am excited for the weeks and months ahead as our preparations continue apace for the next generation of F1.”
Dino Beganovic: “I had a very good day in Abu Dhabi. It was really nice to be back in the car with Scuderia Ferrari HP, it’s always a very special feeling. We completed all the planned programme, which was our main target, and I’m really happy with how everything went. I found my references quite quickly and in the afternoon we did some long runs, during which I had a lot of fun. I’d like to thank the team for the opportunity and I’m looking forward to next season.”
Ayumu Iwasa: “I managed to complete a lot of laps at the post-season test today and it was great to work with Oracle Red Bull Racing again. I drove round here on Friday for Visa Cash App Racing Bulls, so it was nice to get back out on track so quickly. It has been a very long season for everyone, and the test comes so soon, but everyone was really focussed on gathering important data heading into a crucial year with the new regulations. I’ve been able to do a few Formula One tests this season and drove the RB21 in Bahrain for FP1 so it felt good to get back into the car and see how my driving has developed over the last eight months. I hope that the Team can use this data and I was happy the laps I put in.”
Jak Crawford: “Every time I get in the AMR25, I feel myself taking another step forward. Today’s focus was on building mileage and understanding how to adapt the car to different setup profiles. I’m grateful to the team for the opportunity today as well as FP1 last week, and I’m really happy with how both sessions went. I’m now looking forward to some time off before stepping into the role of the team’s Third Driver next year.”
Arvid Lindblad: “It was a great day here in Abu Dhabi and a nice way to start my journey in VCARB. It was a good day of testing, completing a lot of laps as we went through the whole programme. There are several things we need to get up to speed with together, including procedures that we’ve been working on, but overall it was a productive day. It was very beneficial to have done this day of testing ahead of the 2026 season, as it allowed us to put the basic foundations in place. I’m very much looking forward to next year and I can’t wait to get started.”
Kush Maini: “What an amazing experience for me. Firstly, thanks to the team for the opportunity and for all their effort in helping me prepare and executing a really solid day. Everyone at the team has been super to work with, so professional and I have learned a lot today. I felt comfortable and I could just focus everything on completing the run plans, lap by lap. The car ran well, it is just so well engineered and nice to drive, so physically it felt good, but maybe I will have some fatigue in the coming days. It was really cool to have Pierre next to me; he is probably the best driver coach to have so thanks to him too. I think today will take a while to sink in and I am just really grateful to have had this chance.”
Mario Isola, Pirelli: “This test day was an excellent opportunity for all the teams to try out the definitive 2026 tyres, with the compounds set to be formally confirmed on Monday. During the development tests organised by Pirelli throughout this season, the teams individually ran different versions of the prototypes, in various phases of development – from just the new construction to a range of options for the same compound. Today was the first time that they had the entire range at their disposal on track, which gave them the chance to more fully understand the characteristics of the new tyres.
“By using the same mule cars as during the development tests, with the same speed limits, teams were easily able to compare the data captured in Yas Marina with that from the individual test days over the last few months. For our engineers, this test was fundamental to confirm the performance gaps between the compounds and the degradation levels, which has been the focus of our work throughout the year. Analysing the new tyres, which have a smaller footprint against the surface, has also allowed us to check their exposure to graining and overheating: two effects that can potentially increase due to the smaller surface area. Now we have to wait until the end of January to see these latest tyres in action at the Barcelona test on the new generation of cars.”
Here’s how F1 test panned out in Abu Dhabi