McLaren trusts its front wing

The McLaren team is currently the only one that has not implemented a front wing with a “tier” to comply with the new regulations. All the other teams – led by Ferrari and Red Bull – have decided to create a stepped front wing to take advantage of the new rule.

But according to McLaren’s technical director, Paddy Lowe, the team made the right choice. He stated that he trusts the accuracy of the calculations that led his team to choose this solution – even though all their rivals opted for a different choice.

«The new rule has arrived, and as every year, you review this kind of thing (the front wing). So we have revisited the design, redone our calculations, and decided that we would stick with the adopted philosophy, » Paddy Lowe told Autosport.

Several teams are going to come up with different answers to these equations, that’s always the case, because they have a different perspective. There is no right or wrong way – so this rule didn’t affect us.

Lowe also believes that many teams decided to copy Red Bull’s RB7 and with the rule change implemented by the FIA, they ultimately had to find a compromise.

« For the teams that have chosen this trend (of a high chassis), which was initiated by Red Bull, by raising the front of the car and especially the wing, they have continued in this direction. And since they have the fastest car, it’s no surprise that this becomes an interesting direction. »

For the moment, McLaren has no intention of changing its front wing – even though by Melbourne this could be the case as Paddy Lowe admitted that the team was studying the solutions implemented by its rivals.

« Then, there are those who have been affected by the new rule and had to drop their wing and come up with a compromise because you have to have a step. Some have come up with interesting ideas on how to use this step, and we are paying attention to them, » added Lowe.

In any case, this concept did not seem to displease the team’s two drivers, Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton. Both men appeared quite satisfied with the performance of their single-seater at the end of these four days of testing conducted in Jerez.

«The foundation of the car is really something we can work with. I know that the people at the factory are going to learn a lot from these tests and translate that into something new and even better for the upcoming tests. The single-seater seems quite fast – and that’s a good feeling,» Hamilton shared.