FIA rule tweak tipped to “play into Red Bull’s hands”

Red Bull could be the beneficiary of a rule-change for the F1 2025 season, it has been claimed.

A tweak to the regulations surrounding flexi-wings has been made for the upcoming campaign.

And while some teams must scratch their heads to stay within the rules, Red Bull have been tipped to benefit.

Christian Horner told to 'disadvantage other teams'

“This rule change might play into Red Bull’s hands nicely,” Sky Sports’ Ted Kravitz said.

“If the new front wings have less elasticity, we might see a new pecking order. It’s on the teams’ minds.

“If I was Christian Horner, and aero elasticity was not helping my car, and I wanted to peg back McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes, I’d go to the FIA and say ‘I am not happy about this’.

“I’d keep saying it until they changed the rules.

“I’m not saying that’s what Horner has done. But if he’s doing his job, he would put political pressure on the FIA.

“The job of team principal is to disadvantage the other teams.”

The FIA have confirmed that a revised technical directive will begin at the 2025 F1 Spanish Grand Prix, the ninth round of the year.

The rule will require every team to put their wings through sterner flexibility tests.

The term ‘flexi-wing’ emerged to describe the innovation of balancing downforce with reducing drag.

McLaren were the team who came under the most scrutiny last year.

Its rear wing was dubbed a ‘mini DRS’, and McLaren worked alongside the FIA to made tweaks to it.

Mercedes’ front wing also attracted attention from their rivals in 2024.

The FIA’s move to clarify their expectation from the Spanish Grand Prix could have differing impacts on differing cars.

However, each team has plenty of time to get ahead of a potential problem. The new directive does not come into effect for the first eight rounds of the 2025 F1 season, meaning the pecking order will form before any potential changes.