F1 News
Debate | Verstappen is going to benefit hugely from new mini-DRS rules
McLaren may face a problem in the Chinese Grand Prix. The FIA announced on Monday that the 'mini-DRS' effect will be banned as of the nextrace weekend. The papaya team were caught on footage using the so-called mini-DRS and so the team is likely to have to adjust the rear wing. Therefore, the post-race weekend contention is: 'Red Bull and Verstappen are going to benefit hugely from new rules around mini-DRS'
It is speculated that the team that used the mini-DRS effect in Australia was McLaren. For the Woking-based team, it involved increasing the opening of the outer slot of the rear wing at higher speeds. With this, they would benefit from less downforce on the straight, allowing higher speeds to be achieved, as well as better balance at the rear upon braking and better stability overall throughout the cornering phase. This would also yield tyre management advantages.
So the FIA is going to enforce stricter checks to eliminate said aerodynamic effect. On Monday, the governing body announced that the distance between the mainplane and the flap should not vary by more than 0.5 mm after a 75 Kg load was placed on each side of the rear wing, a major reduction from the original 2 mm. However, there will be leeway, albeit a small one, of only 0.25 mm, due to the short notice teams are on.
Will Red Bull benefit from mini-DRS rules?
Do you think Red Bull Racing and Verstappen can benefit from the stricter rules around the use of mini-DRS? Or is it not going to make much difference in lap time and overall performance? Let us know in the poll below!
This article was written in collaboration with Cas van de Kleut.
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