Skip to main content

Sign up for free

  • Get quick access to your favorite articles

  • Manage alerts on breaking news and favorite drivers

  • Make your voice heard with article commenting.

Autosport Plus

Discover premium content
Subscribe

Recommended for you

Verstappen reveals cause of shock Monaco GP retirement

Formula 1
Monaco GP
Verstappen reveals cause of shock Monaco GP retirement

LIVE: F1 Monaco GP commentary and updates - Antonelli comfortably leads, Verstappen out after engine failure

Formula 1
Monaco GP
LIVE: F1 Monaco GP commentary and updates - Antonelli comfortably leads, Verstappen out after engine failure

MotoGP Hungarian GP: Marquez outduels Acosta to win, Aprilia duo collide

MotoGP
Hungarian GP
MotoGP Hungarian GP: Marquez outduels Acosta to win, Aprilia duo collide

BTCC Oulton Park: Cammish beats Cook to victory in opener

BTCC
Oulton Park (Island Circuit)
BTCC Oulton Park: Cammish beats Cook to victory in opener

Verstappen, Mercedes and Piastri: The key factors in F1’s silly season

Formula 1
Monaco GP
Verstappen, Mercedes and Piastri: The key factors in F1’s silly season

Why Toto Wolff may need to try some distraction tactics

Feature
Formula 1
Monaco GP
Why Toto Wolff may need to try some distraction tactics

From “a new back” to the front row: What’s behind Verstappen’s surprise Monaco pace?

Feature
Formula 1
Monaco GP
From “a new back” to the front row: What’s behind Verstappen’s surprise Monaco pace?

The two worrying trends for Russell against Antonelli in F1 2026

Formula 1
Monaco GP
The two worrying trends for Russell against Antonelli in F1 2026

Giorgio Piola's pick of the Australian GP F1 teams' upgrades

The first official sessions of the 2019 Formula 1 season are under way, and plenty of new developments were unveiled on the opening day of running

Across the grid, a number of teams were able to digest their efforts from testing and emerge in Australia with a selection of new parts.

Giorgio Piola has been keeping track of everything across the field, and his exclusive images showcase a number of new developments along with many more points of interest.

Red Bull brought forward a few updates to its RB15 for Melbourne, and one of the most immediately visible of these is a change to the front wing endplate.

Like a number of other teams' designs, including Mercedes and Renault, a small square section has been cut out from the top corner of the trailing edge.

Paired with Red Bull's deep front wing profile, the inner edge of the top element is now exposed. This means it can drive airflow outboard with much greater ease.

The corner of the endplate can develop a tip vortex, which combines with another vortex shedding from the now-exposed top element corner, pushing air around the front tyre with greater strength.

In its endeavours to stay ahead of Mercedes, Ferrari has introduced a unique approach to the front wheel mountings for the race at Albert Park, installing two different front wheel drum designs between the left and the right.

With the majority of heavy braking zones around the circuit being ahead of right-handed turns, the right front wheel has to slow down more than the left to ensure the correct steering can be applied into the corner.

This means the right front brake is working harder, and so Ferrari has included an extra cooling vent at this point to manage the temperatures a little more easily.

Mercedes has also been tinkering with the large upgrade package it brought to the second week of testing, where it trialled a pair of halo winglets on-and-off.

The winglets have been brought to Australia, where the shape and angle of the wing profiles used pens in any turbulence from the halo itself and guides it away from the air intake.

Any rotating airflow off the wing tips pairs up with the squared-off halo attachment area further downstream, offering a little more control in the airflow management in bringing it over the top of the sidepods.


Previous article Renault: B-team dangers threaten Formula 1 revamp hopes
Next article Australian Grand Prix practice: Hamilton leads Mercedes one-two

Top Comments

Latest news