2017 has seen aerodynamics guru Adrian Newey return to focussing on the F1 design team and it appears that the British designer has been experimenting again with flexible body parts.
The stewards after scrutineering in Hungary yesterday have deemed the Red Bull’s front wing illegal and have made the team modify it.
This move could potentially inhibit the Red Bull’s of Daniel Riciardo and Max Verstappen from challenging at the sharp end due to the fact their Power Unit’s output is still lagging behind the Ferrari and Mercedes teams. With Mercedes long wheel base and Ferrari’s oil burning ban, the Milton Keynes team looked set to be a potential factor in the race. Red Bull placed much hope in Hungary due to the low speed nature of the tight and twisty circuit, suitable for the RB13’s handling advantages.
Now the FIA have made Red Bull stiffen their wing to prevent it flexing at higher speeds, gifting a ‘ground effect’ the closer it got to the track in a similar fashion to Ferrari’s trick floor.
Dinged for once. Really, what’s the point?
If the FIA can’t police the ‘no moveable aero parts’ rule properly it should just be dropped. Horner is very fond of saying ‘Well you can’t make anything perfectly stiff, can you?’ with a big grin on his face, and that’s why we’re stuck with tests that allow the teams to run rings around them. The teams are *cheating* by ignoring the rule and designing aero parts to provide a benefit by flexing but at the same time (by and large) passing the tests or taking advantage of the FIA and scrutineers’ lack of knowledge to make the tests ineffective.
Can the FIA inspect the design data to show prove that flex has been built into the system to gain aero advantage? If they can that should be grounds to ban anything – whether it passes a test or not. If not or they’re not prepared to do it then they may as well forget the rule. It doesn’t work as it’s currently being ‘enforced’.
i’m always impressed by the speed at which teams can modify parts when failing tests and then immediately pass them …almost as if they anticipated such a request 🙂
I’ve read that most of the time when a team tries to exploit a gray area in the rules, they also implement a backup plan in compliance with the rules. So it wouldn’t surprise me if the RBR already had alternate wings ready for this situation.
Indeed or location point to add the spacers in
Rumour has it that Newry is now working on invisibly stealthy flexible stiffeners…
according to Horner NOTHING has been said by the FIA or anyone else on banning or having to change the front wing
But Horner never lied before?
Horner is from the same, slippery fork tongued mould as Tony Blair…