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FIA Clears Rotating Rear Wings as Red Bull Resolves Reliability Concerns
Formula 1's governing body will not outlaw rotating rear wing designs after completing safety reviews triggered by Max Verstappen's crashes earlier this season.
By Sanne Vermeer - 2026-08-18T09:08:34.000Z - 2 min read
Formula 1's rotating rear wing designs will remain part of the competitive landscape after the FIA completed an in-depth safety investigation into the concept without finding grounds for intervention. Following weeks of technical scrutiny, single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis confirmed that the governing body has no regulatory objections to the aerodynamic solution and will not step in to ban it.
Dubbed the Macarena wing by Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur, the 180-degree rotating assembly first caught rivals off guard when the Scuderia unveiled it during pre-season testing. While the concept surprised several outfits, Red Bull had already been developing its own version behind closed doors. Technical director Pierre Wache insisted Red Bull did not draw inspiration from Maranello, pointing out that their configuration operates on different principles and turns in the opposite direction.
Manufacturing and operational deadlines delayed Red Bull's deployment, meaning the team only introduced the wing at the Miami Grand Prix. Initial race weekends proceeded cleanly for both squads, but paddock attention intensified dramatically after Max Verstappen suffered consecutive high-speed accidents at Spielberg and Silverstone while running the system.
Those crashes prompted the governing body to request detailed documentation from both Red Bull and Ferrari. Regulators treated both entrants equally as the sole constructors racing the concept, using the opportunity to thoroughly dissect the mechanical and hydraulic dependencies of the rotating mechanisms before wider adoption took hold.
Central to the FIA's evaluation was a rigorous failure mode analysis aimed at preventing dangerous malfunctions. Tombazis noted that inspectors needed reassurance that hydraulic breakdowns could never leave a flap jammed open, while also verifying that transition times were fast enough to avoid destabilising the car on track, especially given that surrounding airflow does not instantly reattach when the wing shuts.
Rather than issuing an outright technical directive against Red Bull, the FIA's safety dialogue led Wache and his engineering group to acknowledge that additional remedial work was required. Addressing those mechanical issues forced the Milton Keynes outfit to temporarily revert to a traditional aerodynamic package at Spa-Francorchamps, before clearing Verstappen and Isack Hadjar to race the rotating specification once again at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
With the federation satisfied that the concept complies with safety thresholds, rival outfits are pressing ahead with their own interpretations. McLaren has already conducted track testing on an equivalent design and intends to race its version at one of the opening events following the summer shutdown.