Red Bull tests front wing configurations in Bahrain

Red Bull is experimenting with different front wing designs during pre-season testing in Bahrain, trying two distinct configurations to understand how they affect the car's aerodynamic performance and its critical 'rake' angle.

Why it matters:

The front wing is the first point of contact for airflow over the car, dictating how air is managed under the floor and around the sidepods. Finding the optimal configuration is key to unlocking overall car performance, balance, and stability. Red Bull's willingness to publicly test such a visible component suggests a deep dive into setup optimization and a search for a wider operational window ahead of the new season.

The details:

• During initial testing in Barcelona and Bahrain, Red Bull used a front wing with very straight lines on its main elements.
• On the first day of the second Bahrain test, the team switched to a revised design on Isack Hadjar's car, featuring a noticeably different profile with a more pronounced lip.
  • This new lip is designed to increase air velocity at the front of the car, helping to keep the nose low and alter the air pressure directed toward the underfloor.
• The core objective is to see how each wing interacts with varying degrees of rake—the forward lean of the entire car. Rake is a fundamental setup parameter that influences downforce and aerodynamic efficiency.
• The test was comparative: after running the new design, the team reverted to the older, straighter-wing configuration on the same car, which was fitted with extensive measuring equipment to gather precise data.

What's next:

The data collected from these back-to-back tests will inform Red Bull's final decisions on its launch-spec front wing and its understanding of the RB22's aerodynamic sweet spots. This experimentation highlights the meticulous preparation taking place even in the final days of testing, as teams seek every possible advantage before the competitive season begins in earnest.