(Motorsport-Total.com) – Red Bull currently has a major concern, and it is not about the future of the four-time Formula 1 world champion Max Verstappen, but about his equipment: Because both at the Austrian Grand Prix and in Great Britain, the Dutchman crashed due to a problem with the rear wing.
Read more «All options open»: Red Bull examines problems with Verstappen’s rear wing
Although Verstappen confirmed after his retirement in Silverstone that it was “a somewhat different problem” than a week earlier in Styria, in both cases the Red Bull driver ended up in the gravel trap with his RB22. “At some point, it just becomes super dangerous,” the 28-year-old complains not without reason.
That is also why Red Bull is doing everything possible to fix the problems with the rear wing as quickly as possible. “We will check the entire area to make sure we leave no possibility for something like this to happen again,” team principal Laurent Mekies said on Sunday evening in Silverstone.
“It is still too early for a final analysis to determine whether it is a problem with the concept itself or something else,” adds the engineer, who apparently already has a clear suspicion about the cause. “But we will certainly leave no stone unturned. And all options are open.”
Is Red Bull temporarily giving up the rear wing?
This means that indeed all options are on the table, including a temporary abandonment of the rotating rear wing in Spa, even though the system helps to effectively reduce the drag of the RB22. Red Bull had introduced its own version of the innovative Ferrari wing for the first time at the Miami Grand Prix.
“We have now raced several races with this concept. That is already several Grands Prix since Miami,” Mekies recalls that there were no problems in Miami, Canada, Monaco, and Barcelona. “We will do everything necessary to be on the safe side.”
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Red Bull still believes in the concept but also knows that it cannot afford another failure – especially against the backdrop of Verstappen’s growing dissatisfaction. Nevertheless, the technical team around Pierre Wache would like to continue using the wing because a change would mean a noticeable step back in terms of drag – and thus overall performance.
Especially in Spa, the rear wing is likely to play a particularly important role. On the energy-intensive track, energy management is expected to be a decisive factor again – precisely in an area where Red Bull has not been among the strongest teams this season so far. Any additional reduction in drag would therefore be of great value.
McLaren postponed first test of the rear wing
However, if doubts about the current specification of the rear wing remain and cannot be resolved in the next two weeks, Red Bull will hardly have any other choice but to play it safe. Because another setback like in Spielberg or Silverstone would be the last thing the team can currently afford.
McLaren also wanted to bring its own rotating rear wing to the track for the first time in Spielberg and test it in free practice. However, the team ultimately decided against using the new wing because the design apparently had not yet reached the desired maturity level.
The wing was also not used in Silverstone due to the sprint format. Thus, Spa could now become the first real practical test. In view of the recent problems at Red Bull, McLaren’s cautious approach seems all the more understandable in hindsight.
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