McLaren Shuts Rival Teams Complaining About Flexi Rear Wing - 'We Work With The FIA To Understand The Grey Areas'

Saajan Jogia | Sep 20, 2024

May 3, 2024; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; McLaren driver Lando Norris (4) races out of turn 17 during F1 Sprint Qualifying at Miami International Autodrome. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-Imagn Images / John David Mercer-Imagn Images

McLaren has responded to rival teams' accusations regarding the legality of its rear wing after the upper flap was observed flexing at high speed on the Azerbaijan Grand Prix's long straight. The team firmly stated that the rear wing complies with regulations, highlighting the ongoing communication with Formula 1's governing body, the FIA, to ensure full compliance and explore "grey areas" within the rules.

Oscar Piastri's strong pace in Baku, where he triumphed over Ferrari's Charles Leclerc to take his second victory of the season, came under the scanner after the rear wing on his MCL38 F1 was seen flexing marginally under extreme load at high speed. The phenomenon created a partial DRS effect, leading rival teams to bring the matter to the FIA's attention. Notably, the car had successfully passed all FIA tests without any concerns.

The governing body said in a statement ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix weekend, that it would continue to check for flexible bodywork on all cars to ensure the flex is within the specified limit. It also emphasized that a deliberate flexing of the wing, even if it complied with the regulation, would be deemed illegal.

While that might have sounded like trouble for McLaren, the team's chief designer, Rob Marshall, who joined early this year from Red Bull, confirmed that the rear wing complies with the sport's regulations and that the team is in regular touch with the FIA to ensure complete legality in its processes. Speaking to the media on how everything comes under the scanner once a team reaches the top, he explained:

"It's very flattering but obviously the nearer the front you are, the more scrutiny you come under. All teams scrutinise their own cars as well as other people's. We scrutinise our car. We work with the FIA to understand the grey areas of whatever element of the car it is and move forward accordingly really."

Speaking about rival teams targeting McLaren for the unique rear wing, he added:

"They've all got their opinions. We work with the FIA to establish the legality of our car. As long as the FIA are happy, that's the only opinion we need to worry about. There's continued dialogue with the FIA. Week in, week out, day in, day out with various aspects of the car. Yes there has been [communication]. I wouldn't want to focus on what aspects."

When Marshall was asked if McLaren was benefiting from its new wind tunnel, he said:

"Yes, you're probably speaking to the wrong person. I was at Red Bull for 17 years and I never went to the wind tunnel once. Now I'm at McLaren, it's now underneath my desk basically. Can't really avoid it. I'm not really the person to speak about wind tunnels, I know that we're happy with it and it's clearly producing good results."