Formula One’s governing body to clamp down on ‘flexi-wings’

LONDON – Formula One’s governing body is introducing new load tests to ensure bendy front and rear wings are no longer a talking point this season.

The FIA said on Jan 31 that the scope of rear wing tests on cars would be increased from the start of the campaign in Australia on March 16. Additional front wing tests will start from the Spanish Grand Prix on June 1.

“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,” the FIA said.

It added the phased approach was to allow teams to adapt without having to discard existing components unnecessarily.

The move is something of a U-turn for the FIA, which said in January that it was not planning to make any changes to the front wing tests.

Aero-elasticity, or “flexi-wings”, has been a hot topic for some time in a sport where teams are constantly pushing the rules in search of fractions of a second of performance gain.

Front and rear wings that pass static tests, but are subsequently seen to flex at speed, have triggered several controversies.

Eventual champions McLaren modified the rear wings

on their cars, after talks with the FIA at

the Singapore race last September.

McLaren said their wing complied with the regulations and passed all FIA deflection tests but they had agreed to minor adjustments.

Meanwhile, Red Bull boss Christian Horner said that the FIA was right to drop Johnny Herbert as a steward because of the former racer’s media work. Horner also denied his team had influenced the decision.

Herbert, a former pundit for Sky Sports television who has continued to offer opinions for a betting website, was axed as a steward on Jan 29, when the FIA ruled his activities were “incompatible” with the race role.

The Briton was critical of Red Bull’s four-time world champion Max Verstappen in 2024 and was on duty in Mexico when the Dutchman was handed two 10-second penalties for clashes with McLaren’s Lando Norris.

“It has absolutely nothing to do with Max. But it’s absolutely the right decision,” Horner told Sky Sports television. “You cannot have stewards working in the media... You’re either on the sporting regulatory side or you’re on the media side.”
REUTERS