Red Bull Contemplates McLaren Approach Amid Front Wing Controversy
In the aftermath of the Monza race, both Red Bull and Ferrari sought a definitive answer from the FIA regarding the legality of McLaren and Mercedes‘ front wings, which were observed to flex significantly on track. Since the Belgian Grand Prix, the FIA has been monitoring the deformation of wings on the track and has stated that all 2024-spec wings comply with the regulations.
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner acknowledges that the FIA’s decision to deem the wings legal will likely encourage his team to pursue a similar design – one that passes static load tests but flexes under dynamic conditions. Horner emphasizes the importance of clarity in such matters, stating, „What is crucial for any team, as with all these things, is always clarity. Is something acceptable or not acceptable? If it is deemed acceptable, then of course, that encourages you to pursue similar solutions.“
He further asserts, „The governing body naturally has all the information available. They have all the analyses that they have recently conducted on many cars. They are collecting this data. But yes, it is one of those things, as I have said before, if it is deemed acceptable, then you follow that path.“
Defining Legal Parameters by the FIA
The FIA has previously indicated that it does not intend to ban any constructions as part of its data collection for the front wing and that any potential regulation changes for the 2025 season would be lifted. While it is generally understood that a wing can flex freely on track as long as it passes static load tests, Technical Directive TD34 states that the FIA does not consider constructions that alter their structural properties through secondary parameters as legal.
These secondary parameters include aerodynamic load and temperature, although it is also noted that a wing cannot be infinitely stiff and will bend under a certain load.
Continued Monitoring by the FIA
The core purpose of the front wing flexing under load is to shift part of the drag in straight sections away from the front wing. However, the downstream effects on the rest of the car are also of interest. It is speculated that much of McLaren’s success – and Mercedes‘ performance boost – in 2024 can be attributed to the benefits of balance that a flexible front wing provides.
The FIA will continue to monitor the wings during the weekends in Azerbaijan and Singapore, having stated last week that „this exercise will continue at least until Singapore to ensure that each team has deployed the camera prescribed by the FIA on different types of tracks (low, medium, high, and very high downforce).“
„This will ensure an extensive database that allows the FIA to paint the most objective picture of the situation possible and quantify the differences between the various dynamic patterns observed on the track,“ it further states.