Red Bull is confident that the F1’s “pliable” wing clamping won’t harm the shape

As Autosport announced earlier this week, the FIA ​​will introduce new stress tests for F1 rear wings at the French Grand Prix to prevent teams from messing around with aero-elasticity.

The FIA ​​believes a number of outfits have come up with clever designs that are capable of passing the current withdrawal tests while standing in the pits, but bowing down on the track for an aero advantage.

While the focus of the new pull-back testing has been on Red Bull, the team doesn’t think the RB16B will be alone after suggesting Spanish Grand Prix winner Lewis Hamilton have a “twisty” wing, when he needs to make changes.

Red Bull’s motorsport advisor, Helmut Marko, is aware that he has not done anything outside of the regulations so far.

“The wing has passed the stress test,” he said in an exclusive interview with Autosport’s German sister publication Motorsport-Total.com.

“That is crucial. Now there are new criteria that have different guidelines with regard to exposure.

“It’s often the case when new regulations come up and teams discover gray areas. But it’s not just about Red Bull, it’s about other teams as well.”

Marko suggests that both Alpine and Alfa Romeo were spotted with rear wings that flex at high speed. Therefore, they too might have to strengthen their wings when the new tests go into effect.

Helmut Marko, 2021 Spanish GP

Photo by: Lars Baron / Getty Images

He has also downplayed Hamilton’s suggestion that the wing should give Red Bull a 0.3 second per-lap lead at the Circuit de Catalunya-Barcelona.

Instead, Marko believes Hamilton made an incorrect calculation when comparing lap times with a high downforce wing configuration that Red Bull tested in Spain on Friday.

“The reason for the smaller rear wing was that we were too slow on the straights,” explained Marko when talking about the high downforce specification that Red Bull didn’t want to use for the rest of the weekend.

“Hamilton then saw as he drove behind us that we were relatively fast on the straights and put it on the wing. Here two things came together.”

While Red Bull is unable to bend the wing that much, it can take some lap time due to the increased drag. However, Marko doesn’t think this will be a big problem in the fight against Mercedes.

“It is certainly not a disadvantage that is decisive for the World Cup,” he said.

He added that the change to the upcoming tests was a repeat of similarly tougher inspections that Red Bull had previously faced in F1 during its period of dominance between 2010 and 2013.

“It’s perfectly normal,” he said. “During our successful World Championship, we had to readjust the front wings two to three times per season.”