As pre-season mind games intensified, David Coulthard has questioned whether Ferrari\u2019s radical rear wing is a masterstroke \u2014 or misdirection.<\/p>\n
The question will be answered in the next two weeks as Fred Vasseur has said Ferrari will either race it in \u201cMelbourne or for the next one\u201d in China.<\/p>\n
Ferrari\u2019s rotating rear wing sparks intrigue ahead of Melbourne<\/p>\n
Want more PlanetF1.com coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google<\/a> to your favourites list for news you can trust<\/p>\n This season, Formula 1 has introduced new cars that are shorter, lighter, and feature active aerodynamics with movable front and rear wings.<\/p>\n The majority of teams have gone with a DRS-styled flap on their rear wings, but Ferrari<\/a> trialled something new on the penultimate day of testing at the Bahrain International Circuit.<\/p>\n Lewis Hamilton left the pits with the SF-26 sporting a highly innovative rotating rear wing. Rather than opening like the DRS of yesteryear, Ferrari\u2019s design saw the upper elements of the rear wing rotate when the driver activated the new straight-line mode.<\/p>\n Although Hamilton only completed five laps with that rear wing before reverting to Ferrari\u2019s baseline design, it caught the attention of rivals and pundits.<\/p>\n And that, says Coulthard, may have been Ferrari\u2019s intention.<\/p>\n The 13-time grand prix winner told the Up to Speed podcast, \u201cIt could be a complete distraction technique.<\/p>\n \u201cThey have had this as a little side project, and now other teams will go and spend time looking at whether it works in CFD, which is the Computational Fluid Dynamics.<\/p>\n \u201cPutting a design team in to look at it, which then means they are not utilising those resources to look at their own cars.\u201d<\/p>\n According to PlanetF1.com tech editor Matt Somerfield, rival teams have already considered a similar design for 2026 but shelved it.<\/p>\n Matt Somerfield tech analysis: Innovative Ferrari SF-26 upgrades<\/p>\n Ferrari unveils radical exhaust flap ahead of F1 2026 aero fight<\/a><\/p>\n F1 Testing: Ferrari unveils radical rotating active rear wing<\/a><\/p>\n Somerfield wrote: \u201cIt\u2019s understood other teams in the paddock considered its use, but opted not to spend time and resources on developing a solution that also had some perceived drawbacks.\u201d<\/p>\n Haas driver Oliver Bearman confirmed this, revealing his team had a look at the design but felt it added too much weight to the car.<\/p>\n \u201cYeah, I saw it, and it looks cool, but it is heavy as well,\u201d said the Ferrari-powered driver.<\/p>\n \u201cI think everyone has considered it, including ourselves, but there is always a compromise to be made on these things.<\/p>\n \u201cI was actually behind Lewis, and I saw it, and I was like: \u2018What happened?\u2019 I thought it was broken.<\/p>\n \u201cBut honestly, it is super innovative, and it looks pretty slick as well. So if it works on track, then they\u2019ve done something right, that\u2019s for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n From Ferrari\u2019s side, though, it looks as if the wing isn\u2019t just a distraction. It will be used. The only question is when.<\/p>\n As Formula 1 prepares to head to Melbourne for next weekend\u2019s season-opening Australian Grand Prix, team boss Fred Vasseur says the team may run the wing at Albert Park, or it may wait until China.<\/p>\n \u201cI think everybody is doing innovation. Sometimes it\u2019s visible, sometimes it\u2019s not,\u201d he told PlanetF1.com and other media outlets.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m sure that our competitors and everybody on the grid is doing exactly the same.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s true that the last two bits that we bought on track were visible from outside, but it\u2019s not a big difference with the others.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know if it will be for Melbourne or for the next one [in China].\u201d<\/p>\n Want to be the first to know exclusive information from the F1 paddock? Join our broadcast channel on WhatsApp<\/a> to get the scoop on the latest developments from our team of accredited journalists.<\/p>\n You can also subscribe to the PlanetF1 YouTube channel<\/a> for exclusive features, hear from our paddock journalists with stories from the heart of Formula 1 and much more!<\/p>\n