McLaren to Trial Upside-Down Rear Wing in Austria

McLaren will trial an experimental "upside-down" rear wing during Friday practice at the Austrian Grand Prix as the team searches for its first win of the 2026 season. The test follows similar concepts raced by Ferrari and Red Bull earlier this year, though McLaren has kept its specific design under wraps ahead of the opening sessions at Spielberg.

Why it matters:

With McLaren sitting third in the constructors' championship on 141 points and still seeking a breakthrough victory in 2026, every marginal gain carries significant weight. The rear wing concept is one of the most talked-about aerodynamic innovations of the season, and successfully unlocking its potential could offer a crucial efficiency or straight-line speed advantage at the Red Bull Ring.

The details:

• Ferrari first drew attention with its so-called "Macarena" wing during pre-season testing before racing its version in Miami. Red Bull followed with its own interpretation, though its version operated on a different principle than Ferrari's design.
• McLaren has not publicly detailed its solution, but the wing is understood to be a dedicated Friday test item rather than a race-ready upgrade for the Austrian weekend.
• The trial runs alongside minor refinements around the rear corners of the MCL40 as part of a focused update package aimed at extracting more performance.
• Chief designer Rob Marshall previously acknowledged that McLaren analyzes all rival concepts, though he admitted not every idea can be adapted to the team's specific architecture and packaging constraints.

What's next:

Data gathered from Friday running will determine whether McLaren pursues a refined version of the wing for introduction at later races. With the team locked in a tight battle and still chasing its maiden win of the campaign, the Austrian weekend could reveal whether this experiment marks a genuine step forward.