It’s no secret that Patrick Dempsey is an avid follower of the Formula 1 circus, and the Hollywood star has explained why he thinks Ferrari are looking ‘very strong’ ahead of the new season of racing.
Patrick Dempsey’s line of work has allowed him the freedom to pursue his passion for motorsports to the fullest, and he’s regularly competed in a multitude of different racing categories outside of his main duties as a world-renowned actor.
Dempsey’s CV in motor racing certainly isn’t one to be sniffed at. He has competed in some of the most prestigious races in the world, including a second-place class finish at the 2015 24 Hours of Le Mans and a P3 2011 24 Hours of Daytona.
For Ferrari, they’re coming off the back of a highly disappointing campaign in 2025. After securing the signature of Lewis Hamilton, arguably the greatest F1 driver in history, podiums became difficult to come by as they languished at the bottom of the sport’s ‘big four’.
However, things are looking up for the Scuderia this season, and Dempsey has shared his optimism for success to return to Maranello.
Patrick Dempsey thinks Ferrari are looking ‘very strong’ ahead of the 2026 F1 season
During an appearance on The Chris Evans Breakfast Show in February, Dempsey delved into his love for the pinnacle of single-seater motorsport and noted the Prancing Horse as the team to beat this year.
After being reminded about how soon it is before the new season kicks off again, the Hollywood star said, “What’s going to be really interesting is to see who’s going to… you know, I’ve been watching testing. So I’ve seen the new cars, and you see a lot of the technology.
“I mean, Ferrari’s been very strong. And they’ve had some great innovations, did you see the wing and how the wing is operating? I thought that was nice.”
After Evans made a joke about Aston Martin’s woes being the result of some crafty sandbagging, the Maine-native also offered his thoughts on Adrian Newey’s upcoming term with the Silverstone-based racing outfit.
He added, “It’s going to be interesting to see what happens with Adrian Newey’s new car and what happens.
“But it’s going to be fascinating because it’s a whole new platform. We won’t know for the first few races who’s going to dominate.”
Patrick Dempsey also praised Max Verstappen’s performance at the 2025 Brazilian Grand Prix
Dempsey also noted that he was present at the Las Vegas Grand Prix during the production of Apple Studios’ F1 feature film.
While highlighting how disastrous the day of filming went for the crew due to the emergence of several issues with the brand-new circuit, he also picked out Max Verstappen’s brilliant drive at the 2025 Brazilian Grand Prix.
He said, “Well, it was really interesting because we didn’t know they had so many troubles during first practice, right? The suction was just blowing the top off of the manhole covers, and it was a complete disaster.
“So you had no idea if this was going to be a great race or not. And it turned out to be one of the best races of the year outside Brazil, which is always one of the best races.
“Like last year, in the rain, Max… there’s just always good racing there. And you could just see he was like a kid in a candy store, being able to be a part of the world championship. And I think everybody, if you like cars, you want to race, especially a Formula 1 car.”
