The latest team news from Las Vegas

The battle continues among the three leading teams in the constructors’ championship. Red Bull and Ferrari are among the teams that had to make modifications to their cars during the Las Vegas Grand Prix following the latest regulatory tightening by the FIA.

Even though there are only three races left before the end of the season, teams continue to develop their cars for this event. The most significant upgrade comes from Ferrari, which has introduced several improvements in hopes of snatching the constructor’s title from McLaren.

Here is the list of improvements by team:

RED BULL

Front wing: Reduction of the elements of the front wing flap in terms of camber and chord. Reduced load front wing flap elements with reduced chord length and curvature (camber) to balance the expected level of the rear wing at the Las Vegas circuit.

Floor partitions: Revised detail of the front edge of the second floor partition from the chassis. By raising the upper edge of the second front partition (from the inside to the outside), a small vortex can be generated to benefit the downstream floor edge.

MERCEDES

Front wing: The rear of the flap has been shortened. The shortening of the rear of the flap was done to reduce the load of the front wing assembly and obtain a reasonable aerodynamic balance when using a rear wing with low downforce and low drag, suitable for the Las Vegas circuit.

FERRARI

Front wing: The leading edge slat provides the necessary aerodynamic balance range associated with the optimal level of downforce expected for Las Vegas. Different configurations are available to allow modulation.

Floor partitions: Redistribution of partition profiles and curvature.

Ground structure: Front volume redesigned / expanded.

Edge of the floor: Remodeling of the edge of the floor. Not specific to the event, this update features reworked front floor walls aimed at improving downstream flow losses. The volume of the front floor bodywork was then reoptimized, as well as the edge load of the floor and the vortex emission in the diffuser.

MCLAREN

Front wing: New front wing flap. The front wing flap has been redesigned to extend the range of available aerodynamic distribution, which may be necessary depending on the specific circuit configuration.

ASTON MARTIN

Front wing: A new front wing flap with less incidence and a reduction in the chord in the middle of the wingspan. The flap is less loaded than the other version, which allows to reduce the total wing load to balance the car with reduced rear wing levels.

ALPINE

Front corner: Optimization of the front corner area. Update of the front drum partition area providing better local flow conditioning, improved interaction with the front suspension, and enhanced overall build quality.

Racing Bulls

Engine cover/Fairing: The downward slope behind the pontoons has been lowered. By lowering the upper part of the bodywork, the high-energy airflow directed towards the rear of the car is improved.

Rear suspension: Local alignment of the flow. The orientations of the suspensions have been modified. The profiles of the suspensions have been realigned to fit the direction of the flow generated by the updated engine fairing.

Rear wing: The geometry of the rear fins has been updated. The profiles of the fins have been modified to improve the attachment of the airflow and increase the generated load.

Mirrors: Modification of the mirror housings used in Monza. The track requires a low downforce configuration, which has led to the reuse of the Monza mirrors with a new modification of the housings to optimize the airflow.

CLEAN

Underbody: The main underbody has been completely redesigned. The updated underbody as a whole aims to improve ground flow characteristics by reorganizing swirls and keeping losses under control.

Floor partitions: Along with the floor bodywork, the partitions have been redesigned. The updated floor as a whole aims to improve the characteristics of the flow beneath the floor by reorganizing eddies and keeping losses under control.

Edge of the floor: Revised floor edge design as part of the new floor concept. The updated floor as a whole aims to improve subfloor flow characteristics by reorganizing vortices and keeping losses under control.

Diffuser: The top and side walls of the diffuser have been updated as part of the new floor concept. The updated floor as a whole aims to improve the characteristics of the flow beneath the floor by reorganizing the swirls and keeping losses under control.

HAAS

Bodywork: Modification of the shape of the rear floor’s expansion. This geometry aims to improve the flow expansion under the chassis when the car is close to the ground, extracting more performance in these conditions.

WILLIAMS

No updates.

These improvements highlight the constant search for performance as teams strive to adapt to the unique challenges of the Las Vegas circuit.