Ferrari trials updated 'Macarena' wing in Monza F1 test

Motorsport photo

Ferrari is set to introduce substantial upgrades on its SF-26 Formula 1 car at the Miami Grand Prix next week.

The cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi grands prix due to the Iran war has altered not just the calendar but also the update schedule: the new parts teams were to bring to the Middle Eastern rounds were postponed to Miami.

Ferrari consequently performed a 'filming day' in Monza to evaluate some of its own upgrades, with a maximum of 200km – and managed – to catch a glimpse of the SF-26.

Confronto ala posteriore Ferrari SF-26 durante il filming day

Comparison of the Ferrari SF-26 rear wing during the filming day

The Scuderia has been working on an updated version of its rotating rear wing, which first appeared in Bahrain pre-season testing, then in Free Practice 1 at the Chinese Grand Prix. This was just a first iteration of a wing that was initially scheduled to debut later in the season.

That's why Ferrari tested its updated wing in Monza, with the endplate area, which houses the actuator, also largely redesigned. The endplates' geometry is now more angular and less rounded at the top near the Italian flag.

The most interesting change concerns the position of the actuator within the endplate: the protrusion is now more oblique and closer to the main plane, enabling a different management of the air flow.

This is an area many teams have been focusing on, giving the endplate profile a three-dimensional shape to alter the air flow. The side view shows the mounts connecting the first movable element to the mainplane when the wing is closed have been retained.