Red Bull and Ferrari await FIA clarity on wing flexibility

The heads of the Red Bull Racing and Ferrari teams are waiting for clarification from the FIA ​​on the issue of flexible wings.

Wings on McLaren and Mercedes cars have been attracting increasing attention of late, with rivals believing the flexibility of these elements of the MCL38 and W15’s aerodynamic bodykit goes against the spirit of the technical regulations, even though they formally meet current standards and fall within the limits set out in FIA load tests.

As speed increases, under the influence of aerodynamic loading, the wings always bend within certain limits, leading to an increase in downforce. But Christian Horner believes that the federation should analyse the design features of McLaren and Mercedes wings in more detail.

“I think everything is clearly laid out in the technical regulations and I think this is an FIA problem,” said the head of Red Bull Racing during the Italian race weekend. – Of course, these wings have passed all the checks that the federation carries out, but then we have to read the wording of the regulations again.

If we recall the events of 2021, which took place around the time of the race in Baku, some provisions of the regulations were adjusted, and although the wings of our cars passed all the tests, we were talking about their elasticity under the influence of aerodynamic loads.

This is an FIA problem, we trust the federation to resolve this, but we also have to have our say.”

Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur also made it clear that he has questions for the FIA: “I don’t want to discuss this topic with the press. I will have a conversation with Nicolas Tombasis (FIA Director of Single Seat Racing) but we have to respect the decision of the federation, but we will discuss this topic behind closed doors with the FIA.”