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How F1 teams chased big top speed gains in Baku

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Ferrari installed a new rear wing on the SF-23, featuring a revised layout of the main plane, top flaps and tip section of the end plate.

These changes all appear subtle at first, but when overlapped (above), we can see how different the two solutions are.

Notably, the central scooped portion of the main plane has been flattened, while a steeper slope has been used on the main plane and the outboard portion where the top flap meets the end plate.

And, while Ferrari previously preferred sawn-off tip sections for its endplates, the new variant has reverted to a more traditional square-edged layout.


Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing RB19

Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing RB19

Photography: Andy Horn / motorsport pictures

Red Bull was the exception in Baku as it continued to capitalize on the arrangement that had propelled it to the top of the speed-trap leaderboard in the first three races.

As we saw in the opening race, Red Bull opted for a lower-downforce rear wing variant and paired it with a single-spar wing element in an effort to reduce drag on the straights without unduly compromising its cornering performance.


Mercedes W14 rear detail

Mercedes W14 rear detail

Photography: unconfirmed

Throughout the course of these new regulations, Mercedes has focused on the upper corner cutout section of the end plate, which the team designed in such a way that it can be replaced quickly without having to completely remove the entire wing.

As part of its ongoing development process, Azerbaijan has made subtle changes to the shape of the end panels and tip section to improve flow around its upper corners, with the team bringing in various corner cuts and infill panels so that it can reduce downforce and drag horizontally accordingly.


Alpine A523 tail detail

Alpine A523 tail detail

Photography: unconfirmed

Alpine A523 front wing detail with sensors

Alpine A523 front wing detail with sensors

photographer: George Piola

Alpine’s new rear wing solution takes an interesting approach to the design of the main plane and the leading edge of the upper flap, as they are both recessed compared to the conventional layout (red arrow).

This means that the main plane and top flaps not only take up very little space in the allowed box area, but the chord length of both is also significantly reduced.

To balance the car, Alpine’s designers also took an equally interesting approach to its front wing, opting to cut off a crescent-shaped section at the inboard end of the upper flap instead of trimming the entire trailing edge like the normal approach.


McLaren MCL60 rear detail

McLaren MCL60 rear detail

Photography: unconfirmed

McLaren has a sizeable update package available in Azerbaijan, which includes a new rear wing and spar layout, both of which are better suited to the demands of the street circuit.

The rear wing is a variation on the scoop-shaped theme already adopted by McLaren this season, with the main plane and top flap taking up less space in the allowed box area. The curvature of the elements has also been revised to help reduce drag without compromising downforce.

The trailing edge of the upper flap has also been trimmed to further increase the car’s top speed, although the central strip has been retained to maintain the same attachment point for the DRS mechanism, while the outer tip section has also been kept at full height.

The updated rear wing also comes with a new spar-wing layout, taking advantage of the double-wing layout we’ve seen Red Bull and Alpine deploy in the past.

McLaren’s version sees the upper element displaced from the lower element mounted at the lowest point between the end panels so that the two elements improve the relationship between the diffuser and upper rear wing element.


Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin AMR23

Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin AMR23

Photography: Mark Sutton/ motorsport pictures

Aston Martin has added a new top flap to the parts kit in Azerbaijan, and the team has opted to trim the rear section of its trailing edge.

Its weekend was marred by DRS issues as the team grapples with issues that surfaced early on in both cars.


Alfa Romeo C43 technical details

Alfa Romeo C43 technical details

Photography: unconfirmed

Alfa Romeo is another team that opted for the more cost-effective method of trimming the trailing edge of the rear wing, but paired it with a design introduced last season where the tip of the end plate was sawed off.

A new spar-wing layout was also deployed, with a biplane layout superior to the commonly used stacked configuration.


Haas F1 Team VF-23 Rear Spoiler

Haas F1 Team VF-23 Rear Spoiler

photographer: George Piola

Haas F1 Team VF-23 Rear Detail

Haas F1 Team VF-23 Rear Detail

photographer: George Piola

Haas also trimmed the trailing edge of its upper flap, albeit in a more aggressive fashion, trimming the trailing edge by a few centimeters to increase its top speed.

Also, only the lower spar wing elements are installed on the VF-23.


AlphaTauri AT04 Technical Details

AlphaTauri AT04 Technical Details

Photography: unconfirmed

AlphaTauri also introduced a range of new parts for the AT04 at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, with a new rear wing and beam arrangement being just some of the items on the menu. While the AT04’s new rear wing is designed to help reduce drag, with a key feature being less upper loads, there are actually two spar wing variants to choose from.

Like some of its rivals, the AlphaTauri had a dual-plane option on hand, but opted to only use the lower single-element version as a means of tweaking the car to meet the demands of the track.


Logan Sargent, Williams FW45

Logan Sargent, Williams FW45

Photography: Mark Sutton/ motorsport pictures

Unlike many of its rivals, Williams doesn’t have a new, lower-downforce rear wing on hand. It did, however, add a new spar variant to its range, which follows the same basic geometry as some of the other variants but has been trimmed to suit Baku’s desired levels of downforce and drag.

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