Team principal Fred Vasseur asserts that the presence of flexible wing designs and the FIA’s restrained stance on the matter heavily contributed to the outcome of the 2024 Formula 1 constructors’ championship.
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It later stated that no modifications will be made to the ongoing front wing tests.
When asked if wing flexibility had played a key role in the championship, Vasseur stated: “I think so” and explained that his concern was that Ferrari couldn’t necessarily take advantage of it right away due to decision-making time and the impact of the cost cap.
He expressed some frustration with this, as it’s apparent the performance is satisfactory, yet we have to wait nearly two months to find out whether the decision is valid or not.
And with the cost cap, you must always keep in mind the cost cap’s impact. This means teams must prioritize budgets and operate within the allotted limits.
For example, if you invest heavily in a project that ultimately doesn’t work out, you’ll be out €600,000. We discussed this in a similar context with Red Bull two years ago – just because you’re incurring a loss of €600,000, that doesn’t mean it’s a catastrophic failure given your overall budget of €150 million.
The McLaren MCL38’s rear wing is detailed.
Photo by: Giorgio Piola
We’re talking about a relatively small portion of a budget that got allocated for this endeavour. Out of a total of around three or four million, we’re discussing around half a million. This makes sense when you consider the costs associated with racing, various technical requirements, and of course, development expenses. In the end, the budgets get split among these different categories, including development, and that’s where half a million falls in.
But it’s a relatively minor incident, and if you burn for nothing half a million, you can’t spend elsewhere. And certainly, that’s when, for me, the story got even more intense.
Vasseur points out that even a minor performance gain from a flexing wing section will significantly impact the team’s position in the 2024 standings, given the tight competition, using Monza’s razor-thin margins as a reference.
Asked if Ferrari’s delay in implementing its own flexing wing – believed to be part of its Singapore upgrade package – dealt a greater blow to its championship hopes than its underwhelming Spain upgrade, Vasseur argued that the two situations were not directly comparable.
It is clear that the tighter the competition, the more we will scrutinize every aspect. I’m unsure if the three-tenths difference between the cars, at that point, warranted such a high level of attention to detail.
But when we had races like Monza, there were often four or five cars very close in terms of time, if we were able to introduce a flexi-wing and incorporate it onto the car, that would undoubtedly make a significant difference.
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I believe the problem stems from a combination of the strict regulations making it difficult to innovate, and the increasing competitiveness of the race.
I’m not sure if skipping a flexi-wing would be more expensive than starting from the beginning, since you can’t go back to the start once the season has begun. It’s also not the same way of doing things.
We had prior knowledge of option one, which put us in a position to consider whether to proceed or not. Option two, however, is a new development that came as an unexpected issue. With the wing, it’s simply a matter of applying mathematical principles.
