The 2026 F1 season will not only be make-or-break for Lewis Hamilton’s own ambitions

Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc hope Ferrari will be in title contention in 2026 (Image: Getty)

Jenson Button worries that Ferrari have created a culture in which people at “afraid to fail”. The 2009 Formula 1 champion’s comment was made as he assessed the Italian team’s chances of achieving their hope of returning to title contention in 2026 by adapting well to the sweeping changes to the sport’s technical rules that will come into force.

But they are not the only ones looking at next season that way – every team up and down the grid hopes it will be the reset they need to steal a march on their competitors. And Button worries that Ferrari’s habit of making changes when things are not going well could derail their chances next year.

He said: “You can’t be afraid to fail and that’s what it feels like at Ferrari. I think everyone feels it’s easy to be pushed out the door and it’s not a nice feeling to have. You need to have consistency throughout the team. It gives everyone confidence, and [it gives] the drivers confidence.

“So I hope that’s not the case next year. I hope that they see out the whole year together, because there’s going to be so much change for the first race, but also the 24th race of next year. So much is going to change throughout the year. So it’s a great team, and I think it has really good leadership, and you don’t get a better driver line-up than that, no?”

Button’s comments come after a forgettable Singapore Grand Prix for Ferrari which saw both of their drivers struggle to make much of an impression. Charles Leclerc was fairly anonymous over the weekend and finished sixth, while Lewis Hamilton was one place on the road but was knocked down to eighth with a post-race penalty for repeated corner-cutting following a brakes failure.

Leclerc said he has been happy with his own performances this year but said he was “disappointed” with the lack of progress Ferrari have been able to make on their car, compared to runaway champions McLaren. He said: “We did a good step forward, but we did the same step as Red Bull and Mercedes.

Jenson Button predicted there will be ‘so much change’ in F1 next year (Image: Getty)

“McLaren has been kind of dominating since the beginning of the season. On that side, it’s a little bit disappointing. But on my side, I’m happy. I’m very happy with the way I perform – I just wish we were fighting for victories.”

But despite speculation suggesting he could be tempted to quit Ferrari, he insists his main goal remains to become world champion while representing the Scuderia. Leclerc added: “My duty and my goal are the same: It’s to bring Ferrari back to the top. I’ll do absolutely everything in order to achieve that.

” What I want really is to have zero regrets, looking back, that I’ve done absolutely everything in order to achieve that. Whether I’ll achieve it or not, I don’t know. I cannot control everything. But I know that at least whatever I have in my control, I’ll try to be at my maximum.”