FIA looking into Red Bull and Ferrari's rotating F1 wings after Verstappen crashes

After Red Bull launched its own investigation into Max Verstappen's Silverstone crash, with team principal Laurent Mekies insisting the squad would leave "no stone unturned", the FIA has also requested additional information.

Autosport has learned that the governing body has contacted both Ferrari and Red Bull regarding their rotating rear wings, which have become known as the 'Macarena wing' since their introduction in Miami.

Ferrari was the first team to unveil a rotating rear wing for the active aerodynamics during pre-season testing in Bahrain, with the aim of reducing drag even further. Although China had originally been targeted as its race debut, Ferrari ultimately decided not to use the design until the Miami Grand Prix.

Red Bull also introduced its own version in Florida, although technical director Pierre Wache stressed that the inspiration had not come from Ferrari. In reality, Red Bull had already been developing its own concept since November 2025, with a design that rotates in the opposite direction to Ferrari's wing.

Red Bull's rear wing is more aggressive in the size of the active aerodynamic opening it creates, and therefore in the amount of drag reduction it can achieve on the straights.

While Ferrari has so far encountered no technical issues with its Macarena wing, Red Bull has suffered two failures on Verstappen's car.

Following his crashes at Spielberg and Silverstone, Verstappen has described the situation as “super dangerous”

Photo by: Sam Bagnall / Sutton Images via Getty Images

Are additional checks or requirements needed?

The team has clarified that the incidents in Spielberg and Silverstone were caused by two different problems, although Verstappen described the overall situation as "super dangerous" after his crash last Sunday.

For the FIA, both crashes are sufficient reason to seek further clarification from Ferrari and Red Bull. At this stage, the request is primarily aimed at obtaining additional information to ensure that both teams are fully compliant with all safety requirements while the system is in operation.

Those requirements include, among other things, the maximum transition time of 400 milliseconds within which the rear wing must close. Logically, however, that time limit does not automatically mean that the airflow has fully reattached.

The technical regulations state: "Any adjustment of RW Flap may only be controlled by the FIA Standard ECU and must have a maximum transition time between the two fixed positions that does not exceed 400ms, measured from the instant at which the command to change mode is issued by the FIA Standard ECU until the position sensor, connected to the FIA Standard ECU, confirms that the commanded fixed position has been reached."

The FIA's primary objective at this stage is to engage with Ferrari and Red Bull to review, in light of the recent incidents, whether both teams fully comply with all requirements.

Only afterwards will the governing body determine whether any additional regulations or checks are required, for example if Red Bull is found to have complied with every existing requirement but such incidents are still possible.

In the most extreme scenario, the FIA could decide to ban the concept for the remainder of the season or for 2027, although that is not the objective of the current investigation and is not immediately on the cards at this stage.

Although McLaren has also been working on a rotating wing, the FIA’s request has so far been limited to Ferrari and Red Bull

Photo by: Paul Foster

FIA request currently limited to Ferrari and Red Bull, not McLaren

Red Bull has already confirmed that it will analyse whether it wants to race with the rotating rear wing at Spa-Francorchamps next week. Aside from the FIA request, Red Bull – particularly given Verstappen's growing frustration behind the scenes – cannot afford another rear wing failure.

"We are going to review the full area to make sure we leave zero chance for that to happen again," Mekies said on Sunday evening. "We will do whatever is necessary to be on the safe side."

Scrutinising the rotating rear wing concept has become even more important because more F1 teams are introducing their own versions. McLaren brought a rotating rear wing to Austria for the first time, but did not yet consider the design ready for use, not even during a free practice session.

Andrea Stella's team also chose not to use the new rear wing during the Silverstone sprint weekend because of the weekend format, but hinted that the wing could make its on-track debut in Belgium.

Autosport understands that the FIA's current request concerns only Ferrari and Red Bull, and does not at this stage extend to McLaren.