The FIA’s move to impose tougher rear wing flexibility tests to stamp out mini-DRS tricks from this weekend’s Chinese Grand Prix was triggered by suspicions surrounding four Formula 1 teams, The Race has learned.
Following evidence obtained by the FIA from HD video camera footage of rear wings at the season-opening Australian GP, allied to static tests conducted in the pitlane, the governing body felt there were “sufficient grounds” to take immediate action for this weekend's Shanghai sprint weekend.
While no team has been singled out by the FIA as being the catalyst for its action, sources have indicated it was the behaviour of four cars in particular from Bahrain testing and the Australian GP that caught the attention of both rival teams and the governing body.
These squads are understood to be McLaren, Ferrari, Alpine and Haas.
There is no suggestion that any of the squads have broken the rules, and indeed Lando Norris’s car was examined by the FIA after the Australian GP and fully complied with the rear wing flexibility checks there.
The FIA also confirmed in its statement earlier this week that “all cars raced in Melbourne were deemed to be legal".
However, the FIA’s immediate response to enforce more stringent tests for the Shanghai weekend – allowing just a 0.75mm slot gap variance from a 75kg load test applied to the mainplane – clearly indicates that the governing body has seen enough to feel that whatever behaviour it spotted must not be allowed to carry on.
Change or no change?
The teams involved in the saga have all played down talk that the revised tests are going to force them to abandon current designs or make modifications to their rear wings.
McLaren has insisted that the same configuration of rear wing that it used in the Bahrain test and Australia will continue to be raced in China without modification – and that it will pass the new test.
Norris even suggested that McLaren’s wing was probably not flexing enough compared to others.
"We don't have to change anything," he said. "Ours is fine. In fact, ours is probably too good and we probably are not pushing the limits enough honestly."
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc said that his team was in the "same" situation as McLaren of not needing to make modifications.
Asked who he felt the suspicions were aimed at, Leclerc said: "I don't know…I really don't know."
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Asked about his team’s involvement, Alpine’s Pierre Gasly said: "Hopefully it is good for us. We'll see this weekend what it does, over the next few weeks, who's impacted from it, who isn't.”
Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu said that while his squad would not need to make modifications to the wing, “we may have to change a little bit how we set up the wing, but not the design or anything".
This comment may offer a clue that the tricks being employed by teams are more about how the wings are configured rather than any designs themselves being outside the new restrictions.
Teams have been experimenting with different rear wing configurations in this early phase of the season. McLaren has been spotted with two alternative designs, and these could produce varying amounts of opportunity to flex.
The main problem the FIA has is that it's unable to check the flexibility of wings while they are out on track - and the true forces are exerted on them.
So even if a wing is spotted flexing on the circuit, if it passes the static load tests then it will be deemed to be within the regulations.
This means teams can deliberately target designs that withstand loads exerted on them in the FIA checks, but still deform out on circuit as required.
What has been spotted
The first suspicions of mini-DRS tricks emerged during pre-season testing when Red Bull said it was concerned by some strange behaviour from rivals.
The team’s technical director Piere Wache told The Race about attempts to get rid of mini-DRS over the winter: “It is still going on. I think Ferrari and McLaren are doing the mini-DRS stuff still."
The Race has learned that this year’s mini-DRS controversy involves a different area of the wing compared to last year – when McLaren managed to flex the main DRS flap to help open the slot gap and reduce drag.
This time around the key area of focus is the flap area outside of the DRS element. It is suspected the slot gap is being manipulated to open up slightly – and not even as much as last year’s McLaren trick that helped Oscar Piastri win the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
The theory is that by rotating the flap to open up the slot gap in this area, it not only helps to reduce the frontal area of the wing but also helps stall the wing – delivering an immediate reduction in drag.
This benefit has been described by sources as “potentially significant”.
While the focus for the Chinese GP is on the slot gap variance, it is not impossible that the FIA takes further action to address flexible rear wing behaviour if it continues to have suspicions that teams are pushing things too far.
Article 3.15.1 of the Technical Regulations allows the FIA to introduce either new or more challenging load-deflection tests if it suspects there are any potential breaches of the rules.
“In order to ensure that the requirements of Article 3.2.2 (that aerodynamic parts are rigidly secured and immobile) are respected, the FIA reserves the right to introduce further load/deflection tests on any part of the bodywork which appears to be (or is suspected of), moving whilst the car is in motion,” it states.
