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The legendary McLaren Formula 1 team agreed to alter the design of its championship-leading car on Friday morning despite denying allegations that the car design was illegal.
Rival teams raised allegations of cheating after video footage showed the rear wing of the McLaren flexing under high speed at last weekend’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The flexing, which is banned by rule, added a significant amount of top speed to the car while on straightaways.
Is McLaren rear wing flexing more under load than it should? š¤ grid comparison against the Ferrari to see how much each are moving under load and the return to position under braking pic.twitter.com/uguYmSVk8w
— Stefanā“ā“ (@HPP7Strat2) September 15, 2024
“Yes, [there is] definitely a dialogue that we’ve already had,” Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc, who finished as the runner-up to McLaren’s Oscar Piastri in Azerbaijan, said of the mechanism. “I mean, I think (Ferrari team principal) Fred (Vasseur) will go on that matter a bit more into detail, but from what I’ve been told, it’s controversial to say the least. So, yeah. I’ll leave that here and I’ll let Fred comment on it a bit further.”
McLaren Agrees To Alter F1 Car’s Rear Wing Despite Stating Its Innocence
McLaren maintained its innocence after discussions with the sport’s governing body. Yet it also stated that it would alter the design of its car.
“Whilst our Baku rear wing complies with the regulations and passes all FIA deflection tests, McLaren have proactively offered to make some minor adjustments to the wing following our conversations with the FIA,” a team statement said on Saturday.”
McLaren finished first and fourth in Baku to take the lead of the constructors championship for the first time since 2014. Additionally, McLaren driver Lando Norris finished one spot ahead of championship leader Max Verstappen despite starting the race in 16th place.
Norris sits second in the drivers championship, 59 points behind three-time defending champion Verstappen. But he has outscored Verstappen by 25 points over the last five race weekends.
With seven race weekends remaining, Norris could seriously threaten Verstappen for the championship. But the new changes to the McLaren may well put a dent in those hopes.