New ‘mini-DRS’ row brewing after pre-season testing in Bahrain

After rule changes to wipe out flexing rear wings for the F1 2025 season, an unnamed team principal said teams are still “keeping a very close eye” on the issue.

McLaren in particular came under the microscope in this area last year, with their rear wing slot gap appearing to move at high speed during the Azerbaijan Grand Prix and, while no rules were broken, the team “proactively offered” to make minor changes when in discussion with the FIA.

New ‘mini-DRS’ concerns raised after F1 2025 testing in Bahrain – report

To ensure the teams could not make use of any top speed advantage when DRS was not in use, the wording of the FIA Technical Regulations was updated for 2025 to reduce the minimum and maximum slot gap width in rear wings.

But to ensure there was clarity, Article 30.10.10 tightened the regulations by stating: “Except in the event of a DRS failure or the transitioning from one position into the other the DRS bodywork can have only two positions, such that the DRS bodywork position must be the same before and after each state of deployment” – meaning the DRS must only be open or closed, with no room in between.

After testing in Bahrain, a report from The Race stated that rear wing flexing may still be an issue on the grid, either through the entire rear wing flexing at speed rather than just the slot gap, or continuing with slot gap flexibility.

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Red Bull technical director Pierre Waché told the publication of his concerns, believing flexing to be “quite visible” and adding: “It is still going on, I think Ferrari and McLaren are doing the mini-DRS stuff still.”

One unnamed team principal added: “Looking at the videos we have seen, some of the rear wings out there appear to be quite flexible. It is something we are keeping a very close eye on.”

Rear wing flexing and other technical requirements are not checked strictly for FIA technical compliance during testing, though Waché added “it will be” an anticipated topic of conversation when the teams touch down in Melbourne for the season opener, and over the course of the early rounds.