McLaren’s Rise or Downfall
Formula 1 is the pinnacle of motorsport and a timeless classic performance of speed. Ten teams, 20 drivers, compete for two championships over the course of a 24-race season spread across nine months. During the 2024 season, there has been numerous race winners resulting in a tighter competition for both the titles. A shocking close competitor and now Constructors’ championship leader is McLaren F1 team. Fans and the other nine teams on the grid are skeptical of this newfound dominance and with good reason. Several possibly illegal upgrades have been made to the car and the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile or the FIA have been investigating into these matters.
It has been reported by numerous sources including the Formula 1 official site, that McLaren’s rear wing had a controversial amount of flexibility. The rear wing on the MCL38 was seen flexing open on fast, non-DRS, straights in Azerbaijan. Openings in the rear wing are an advantage and usually part of the Drag Reduction System, any opening other than the flap meant to open in only DRS enabled zones. The team stated that their rear wing in Baku was in compliance with FIA regulations but will still continue to make adjustments to the structure. Minor adjustments were made after speaking with the FIA and before the next race in Singapore.
On a Formula 1 car, along with the rear wing, there is a front wing that creates downforce on the car allowing air to pass over the car smoothly for essential grip on the track. It has been recently reported that McLaren has been using what is called a flexi-wing for their front wing. As the sport itself develops, so do the cars, meaning engineers need to alter designs in ways to run perfectly in all conditions. With the flexi-wing design, the front wing is adaptable to any speed allowing different amounts of downforce to be applied over the car creating a more efficient race pace. The ideal front wing would be stiff during low speeds to create enough downforce to avoid understeer while during high speeds it will flex enough to shift the aerodynamic balance of the car and reduce the possibility of oversteering. McLaren isn’t the only team using this engineering strategy though, Mercedes has the same design for their front wing. While this design is not illegal and passes all FIA requirements, it is still a controversial design and has been debated on whether it should be allowed or not. This wing has given substantial advantages to both teams through the season since their upgrade packages.
Teams are allowed by FIA regulation to install sensors in the holes on the body of the cars, with the rule that the teams must then cover those holes for qualifying and races. McLaren was in hot water over reportedly not covering these holes, according to a report by the German publication Auto Motor und Sport, the team was allegedly using extra holes in the brake drums at both the front and rear. Red Bul had reported to the FIA that McLaren was guilty of using these holes as an extra cooling hole during qualifying and races by not covering them as required. The FIA dismissed the allegations by reporting that the team had covered the holes with tape which is allowed.
Looking forward as we approach the Austin Grand Prix, the team so far has beaten all of these allegations thrown their way, common when a team goes from horrible a year ago to the top contender for the Constructor’s World Champion. Should McLaren keep their nose clean and continue the amazing performance they have been giving so far this season, we may see the first McLaren title in 26 years, another prime era of Formula 1 racing. Will we see this historic team finally figure it out and give a papaya championship, we will find out after the next six races.