REVEALED: How Is the Mercedes F1 Car So Quick? Decoding the Controversy Around Rear Wing

Lewis Hamilton’s back-to-back wins at Interlagos and Losail Circuit have shifted the advantage towards Mercedes in this nail-biting championship. However, Red Bull believes that Mercedes is getting around the wing flex regulations to gain this incredibly fast speed down the straights. Mercedes rear wing suspension has been under debate since the Turkish GP.

Needless to say, any technical changes made by the F1 juggernaut are closely scrutinized by the F1 community.

For the context, there are regulations in the sport which say that the rear wings cannot flex more than 85mm. When the high-speed air hits the wings, the more these wings flex, the lesser is the frontal area in the air. It causes lesser drag and gives high speed down the straights. The FIA checks the wing flex by adding weights to the wings, and measuring how much they move.

#AMuS Allegedly the FIA has informed all teams about a new rear wing test. The TD [flexi wings] which was introduced in the summer, is to be extended by a new passage with a special test. Specifically tailored to Red Bull’s complaint [about Mercedes].https://t.co/3snJMq0pst

— tami. (@Vetteleclerc) November 20, 2021

Mercedes’ edge over the rest of the grid

The whole controversy unfolded after Lewis Hamilton went on to win the Sao Paulo GP after getting a hefty penalty through the weekend. The Briton was marching through the midfield like a bullet. Data showed that Hamilton’s top speed in Qualifying at Brazil was 7.7 km/h quicker than Verstappen. However, The Briton had a reduced advantage of 3.4 km/h over the Dutchman in Qualifying at Qatar.

The Mercedes’ advantage against the rest of the grid except Red Bull was 1.24 percent at Interlagos while it was merely 0.596 percent in the case of Red Bull. The advantage of the Brackley team dropped to 1 percent in Qatar over the rest of the grid except the Milton Keynes team.

Red Bull pushing towards better scrutiny

Red Bull boss Christian Horner and advisor Helmut Marko have been extremely vocal about the advantage Mercedes have down the straights. “The way the car drives past on the straight is not normal,” said Marko as reported by PlanetF1.

“If we believe the car is not in compliance, we will protest. The straight-line speeds that we’ve seen in Mexico and in Brazil, I mean, I think everybody could see Brazil was not a normal situation,” said the Horner in the FIA press conference in Qatar.

After Red Bull vowed to protest against Mercedes if it continues to run its rear wing from Brazil, focus has centred on “score marks” which point to an outlawed trick to boost top speed

Here’s how the situation developed https://t.co/S9p2BcPfgU #F1

— Autosport (@autosport) November 19, 2021

Meanwhile, Mercedes boss Toto Wolff is not too concerned with Red Bull accusations. “I think we’ve been controlled 14 times on this very particular wing,” he said. “The FIA has all drawings about it, there is no such thing as Red Bull expects there to be. So we are happy to send it, cut it, can send you one to Milton Keynes.”

With two races left in the season, it will soon be settled on the track. Tell us your opinion on this controversy.

Read More- How Ferrari’s F1 Drivers Are Exempted From One of Its Very Peculiar Rule

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