Explained: What is McLaren’s ‘experimental’ F1 rear wing set for Austrian GP debut?
The McLaren Formula 1 team is set to debut its own version of a ‘Macarena’ rear wing design at the Austrian Grand Prix this weekend.
Ferrari turned heads in the F1 paddock when it first introduced the unique upside-down rear wing innovation during pre-season testing in Bahrain.
Following further tests in China, Ferrari finally raced its novel rear wing solution from the Miami Grand Prix. Red Bull also debuted its own interpretation of the eye-catching rear wing design in Miami.
Now, McLaren appears to be the latest team set to introduce its version at the eighth round of the season at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg.
McLaren’s technical director for applied engineering Neil Houldey revealed ahead of this weekend’s race that the team is bringing an “experimental” rear wing as part of its latest upgrade package.
“We’re always looking to make refinements that add performance and lap time to the car,” Houldey said. “For this event, we’ve focused on minor detail updates around the car’s rear corners, as well as an experimental rear wing that will run throughout Friday’s sessions.
“While the overall package is lighter than some of our recent updates, these developments are all part of our season-long development pathway, and we’re continuing to look for every lap time opportunity wherever we can.”
It is understood that McLaren will trial the upside-down rear wing as a test item in Friday practice at the Red Bull Ring, but is unlikely to race it until later in the season.
Speaking to media including Crash.net during F1’s enforced break in April, McLaren chief designer Rob Marshall admitted Ferrari’s rear wing design had caught the team’s eye.
“Everyone saw that and thought, ‘oh, okay, yeah, that's all right. But [are] we sure that's legal?’ Yeah, it is! Okay,” Marshall admitted.
Of rival F1 team designs, he added: “We look at everything; some things are closed off to use quite quickly when you look at the regulations, but others remain open.
“Others are kind of limited by architectural changes you may have made, or what you do with the engine, but ultimately, we analyse everything.
“Some things go as far as being wind-tunnel, or CFD tested, and others are kind of thought experiments we do to see whether it would be good or bad for us.”
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