Ferrari’s wing experiment
Ferrari fast‑tracked a rotating rear wing in Shanghai but then reverted to a conventional wing after the trial — Lewis Hamilton still scored his first Ferrari podium in China, yet voices including Luca di Montezemolo warned the SF‑26 isn’t ready to win a title. The episode underlines Ferrari’s high‑risk development push this season and ongoing performance gap to Mercedes (planetf1.com) (planetf1.com).
Ferrari put the rotating rear wing on the SF‑26 only during FP1 because Shanghai was a sprint weekend with a single practice session, and team principal Fred Vasseur said the team “didn’t put enough mileage” on the part. (planetf1.com) Vasseur told media the package will “probably” be run again at the Japanese Grand Prix in Suzuka as the team needs track mileage and reliability before a full‑weekend introduction. (planetf1.com) Broadcast footage from FP1 showed Lewis Hamilton lose the rear at Turn 6 while the wing was in transition, and PlanetF1 said a rival‑team source indicated teams often delay straight‑line mode activation between front and rear aero. (planetf1.com) Hamilton described the wing’s Shanghai outing as “maybe a little bit premature,” and the Shanghai result came in his 26th race for Ferrari and marked the 203rd podium of his career. (planetf1.com) Ferrari reverted to a conventional DRS‑style rear wing for the remainder of the weekend and Vasseur said the car will carry the rotating device only “when the reliability will be OK and mileage will be OK.” (planetf1.com) PlanetF1’s technical analysis, citing its tech editor Matt Somerfield, warned of potential drawbacks to the rotating concept—specifically a brief “sail‑like” effect during the wing’s opening and closing that several teams had already ruled out. (planetf1.com) Ferrari’s official Sunday report recorded that the team consolidated second in the Constructors’ standings on 40 points after Shanghai and confirmed the championship resumes at Suzuka in two weeks’ time. (ferrari.com)
