McLaren point to controversial device to explain F1 'copying'

McLaren chief designer Rob Marshall has explained why the team often looks to see if it can "copy" upgrades from rival teams, referencing the 2009 double diffuser in his answer.

With F1 still at the start of a new set of chassis technical regulations, teams can make giant leaps with their upgrades, some of which catch the eye of rivals. 

McLaren has committed to bringing an almost new MCL40 machine to the Miami and Canadian Grands Prix in terms of upgrades, with Marshall previously name-checking Ferrari, Audi, and Aston Martin as teams which had developed parts which had sparked an interest, including the 'macarena' rear wing of the Scuderia.

Explaining at length why teams invest time in trying to understand rivals' upgrades, Marshall pointed to one of F1's most controversial developments, the double diffuser, which Brawn, Toyota, and Williams initially ran in 2009.

Deemed ultimately to be legal by the FIA, Adrian Newey, then at Red Bull, protested it wasn't, whilst designing Red Bull's own version, with Marshall, previously a Newey lieutenant, detailing the process behind 'copying.'

"We look at everything; some things are closed off to use quite quickly when you look at the regulations, but others remain open," Marshall told media, including RacingNews365. 

"Others are kind of limited by architectural changes you may have made, or what you do with the engine, but ultimately, we analyse everything. Some things go as far as being wind-tunnel, or CFD tested, and others are kind of thought experiments we do to see whether it would be good or bad for us. 

"But the bottom line is that we look at pretty much everything the opposition does up and down the grid and try to assess whether those things would work on our car. 

"There is a common phrase in F1 that copying stuff doesn't work, what works on one car won't work on another, but that's not necessarily true.

"The double diffuser worked on one car, and everyone copied it, so copying is just a part of F1.

"There is one thing in copying others, actually trying to understand what is going on, what the other team is trying to achieve, and that's where the real trick of it is, because you can copy someone but don't have their understanding.

"If you research it properly, hopefully, you will develop the same sort of background IP, so it is a nod to the other teams.

"It's just a part of F1, some things you think of yourself, and you're proud of those, then the stuff you copy, and other things you just develop or invent in the bath, and no-one wants to copy that."