What recent FIA intervention means for Red Bull and McLaren

The FIA has decided, contrary to earlier assumptions, to further tighten the rules surrounding so-called 'flexi-wings' - and how they are tested.

Instead of the previous 15mm of accepted movement, they are now allowed to flex only 10mm. And new statistical tests must ensure those guidelines are met.

The governing body announced those new restrictions will take effect, for rear wings, from the opening round of the coming F1 season, in Melbourne. For the ninth grand prix of the year, in Spain, those changes will also apply to the front wings.

The two-phase introduction is predicated on FIA assumptions that rear wings, in the first iterations of the 2025 cars, will already meet the new requirements.

The phenomenon of flexible wings has always played more on the front of the car, so postponing the new rules at that end gives teams the chance to participate in the first grands prix without drastic changes.

This way, the mandated alterations can be included in already-planned update packages at the start of summer.

What that means for Red Bull and McLaren

There have been plenty of immediate suggestions online that the changes will reshuffle the pack to a degree, with some teams hit much harder than others. But that does not appear to be the case.

Firstly, suggestions McLaren would have pushed the FIA to take this kind of action are unfounded and completely illogical.

After all, in 2024, McLaren was the team that best managed to employ the functional uses of flexi-wings, at least for most of the summer period.

There is also no evidence to support the suggestion it wanted to slow down Red Bull with the new rules.

Red Bull, like Ferrari, did not hit the path of flexi-wings until very late last season, so it can put the project back on hold with the same ease.

There is no doubt the Red Bull concept is much less built around, and contingent upon, the possible effect of flexi-wings.

In addition, the Milton Keynes-based squad always indicated that TD018 would never be a "game changer" anyway, so it will, therefore, not create any significant headaches for the new F1 season.