The FIA under Mohammed Ben Sulayem who was elected president in December 2021 has been front and centre each year across a range of Formula One topics. This was in direct contrast to the hands off approach of his predecessor Jean Todt, who in fact left the organisations finances in something of a mess.

Whilst Ben Sulayem has turned around the FIA’s finances a number of the other hands on initiatives he has instigated have irritated pretty much the entire paddock in one way or another. The drivers’ learned last week, the punishment for swearing has been escalated this year, with fines beginning at €40,000 then doubling for the second strike followed by a one. Month race ban and a €120,000 for a third offence.

Given the drivers are enjoying the end of their winter sojourns and will first be together as a collective on Feb 18th, for the first ever F1 launch event of the ten cars competing this year, to date they have made no reposes to the draconian new regulations.

 

 

 

Red Bull & Ferrari protest McLaren upgrades

Last year there was a mini revolt from Red Bull and Ferrari who were concerned about the flexi-wings used by McLaren as early as the Miami Grand Prix early in May. The FIA dithered over their response before finally fitting motion sensor cameras to the Fq cars at the Belgian Grand Prix late in July.

The result was sometime after the summer break the FIA declared the wings were legal after under the current regime of static load tests applied and so Ferrari and Red Bull went to work to replicate the McLaren trickery. Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur was not impressed with the FIA’s delays claiming it had cost his team around two months of development time given Ferrari believed they would be in the end be ruled illegal.

When asked post season whether Ferrari losing out on the team championship was in part because of the FIA’s ponderous response to the flexi-wing issue, he replied: “I think so. I’m a bit frustrated with this, because it’s clear performance, and we wait two months for the decision if it’s legal or not.

Some fans of the sport were bemused by the big deal being made by Ferrari given the investment required was between €500,000 and €1m and with the budget caps set around €150m, this seems a drop in the ocean. Yet as the Ferrari boss pointed out, the €150m is the entire budget for the season to design build and build the cars, go racing across the globe and deliver in season upgrades to add performance.

Ferrari re-train Hamilton how to brake effectively

 

 

 

In season F1 car development budget relatively small

The in season development budget is only around €10m a year and so the spend on developing flexi-wings is in fact 5-10% of an F1 teams budget.

Vasseur’s point over the FIA delay was evident when Ferrari finally fitted their wing upgrades with six races to go and with a points deficit to McLaren of 75 points. As the cheered flag fell in Abu Dhabi, the iconic Italian F1 outfit we’re just 14 points behind the papaya liveried cars, rising out on their first constructors’ title since 2008.

Were this there end of the matter, Ferrari and Red Bull would have thrown their efforts into developing the wings over the winter to be ready for the McLaren challenge come the start of the 2025 season. The FIA even confirmed there would be no more changes in this area of the regulations for 2025 as the teams entered the final two rounds of last season.

As the 2024 campaign drew to a close, the FIA informed the teams there would be no more changes to the regulations governing the measurement of flexi bodywork, the reason being each teams solution delivers different loads from the others at different points around a given circuit and the FIA’s head of single seater racing, Nicolas Tombazis stated any change in the rules would have been “a bit knee jerk.”

Ferrari modify Hamilton’s car for next test

 

 

 

Conundrum too tough for FIA to crack

“Because the front wing gets loaded in different ways, we cannot predict it easily in the regulations. As no two wings have exactly the same loading pattern, it is very difficult to come with a proper test.

“So, as these rules have been around since 2022, we felt it was a bit knee jerk to suddenly say that for 2025 we were going to change it, or indeed change something for 2024, but we are using this information we’re gathering to perhaps lead us to something a bit more effective for 2026,” concluded the FIA official.

Now given the green light, the teams have beavered away over the winter to design their 2025 challengers with the FIA’s decision having been made. The flexi-wing element to the current crop of  ground effect cars is crucial to the fundamental design in that it provides a wider operating window for the setup and allows the cars to be run lower to the ground thus creating more downforce.

Now the FIA appears to have done a U-Turn on the topic, stating on Saturday: “Following further analysis carried out by the FIA single-seater department after the conclusion of the 2024 season, we are committed to ensure that bodywork flexibility is no longer a point of contention for the 2025 season.

“These adjustments are aimed at further refining our ability to monitor and enforce bodywork flexibility regulations, ensuring a level playing field for all competitors to promote fair and exciting racing.”

“DIVORCE!” – Wolff surprised at Hamilton comments

 

 

 

Stop/Go nature of FIA decisions

First to respond has been Red Bull’s Christian Horner who reasons that having accepted the FIA’s original position before the winter race to produce the cars for this year, a significant amount of effort and budget has gone into developing the McLaren style flexi-wings.

“I think what’s crucial for any team, as with all these things, is always clarity. Is something acceptable or is it not? If it’s deemed to be acceptable, then obviously that encourages you to pursue similar solutions yourself. So the regulator, obviously they have all the information available and all the analysis….” from their investigations carried out in the autumn of 2024.

“They’re collecting that data. But yeah, it’s one of those things, as I say, that if it’s deemed to be acceptable, then you pursue that route.”

Of course the about turn from the FIA will affect all the F1 teams and given McLaren had the most refined version of the moveable aero trickery, they should be penalised the most come the start of the European racing season. Its unclear whether following the new analysis to be performed, whether the FIA will issue a technical directive which affects this year’s car design, or whether this is meant to give the FIA better visibility for the brand new cars coming in 2026.

New Red Bull F1 car breaks cover

 

 

 

Newey now opens up about leaving Red Bull

Adrian Newey’s departure from Red Bull remains one of the biggest shake-ups in recent Formula One history. The legendary designer, who has played a pivotal role in several championship-winning campaigns, is set to begin a new chapter with Aston Martin in March. However, his latest comments shed light on the real reasons behind his decision to leave Red Bull, suggesting that his departure was not simply a matter of seeking a new challenge, but something much deeper.

In an exclusive interview with *Auto Motor und Sport*, the 66-year-old revealed his thought process behind the decision, admitting that just a year ago he would never have imagined leaving the Milton Keynes-based outfit.

“I think if you would have asked me 12 months ago if I would leave Red Bull and start again now, I would have said, ‘No, you’re crazy,’” said Newey. However, as time went on, he began to feel that staying with the team would have meant compromising his own sense of integrity…. READ MORE