There are many differences between the Canadian Grand Prix trak, the 4.361-kilometre Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve in Montreal, and the Catalan circuit that hosted the previous round of the 2023 Formula 1 championship, the Spanish Grand Prix, with almost opposite setup requirements. The Barcelona track requires a medium-to-high level of downforce for the medium-to-high-speed corners.
Different choices are made for the North American circuit, where traction is needed for restarts and aerodynamic efficiency for the straights. Let’s now see in this comparison all the rear wings chosen by the teams for the Canadian Grand Prix weekend.
Red Bull maintains the medium-to-high downforce wing
The first comparison we’re going to make is between Ferrari, Red Bull, Mercedes, and Alpine. The reigning world champion team, relying on its aerodynamic efficiency, has chosen to keep the wing used at the Baku City Circuit. This choice will give them a great advantage in the race. Ferrari has chosen the medium-to-low downforce mono-pillar wing for the Canadian circuit, aiming to achieve higher top speeds. There is still a question mark regarding the package of floor and bargeboard updates, which, after their debut in Barcelona, did not deliver the expected results.
Mercedes aims to confirm its performance in Canada after the double podium in Catalonia. To do so, they have opted for a medium downforce wing here, to not sacrifice too much in terms of race pace. The last team in this quartet is Alpine, arriving at the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve in Montreal with a significantly slimmer wing in the endplate area. This will improve the car’s efficiency to achieve higher speeds. Among these four teams, only Ferrari and Red Bull have a gurney flap, which provides partial recovery of aerodynamic downforce.
Show your support for Scuderia Ferrari with official merchandise collection! Click here to enter the F1 online Store and shop securely! And also get your F1 tickets for every race with VIP hospitality and unparalleled insider access. Click here for the best offers to support Charles and Carlos from the track!
Comparison of Rear Wings: Haas, Aston Martin, Williams, AlphaTauri, McLaren, and Alfa Romeo
Among the cars being compared, Haas presents a medium-to-high downforce wing, with a long chord mainplane. The DRS flap is also quite extensive, and if the wing turns out to be final, the movable flap will be more effective and powerful. Aston Martin brings a wing to Canada with a moderately loaded mainplane. Probably during the weekend, the green team will choose a slightly slimmer wing to be faster on the straightaways. Alfa Romeo prefers a slightly slimmer wing compared to the AMR23. AlphaTauri and McLaren have also opted for medium-to-low downforce rear wings.
The MCL60 adopts a slightly spoon-shaped mainplane for more efficiency in the endplate area. Williams arrives in Canada with a rear wing featuring a relatively linear and thin mainplane. Additionally, the Grove-based team has equipped the DRS flap with a small gurney flap to recover downforce in view of the Canadian Grand Prix this weekend.
Leave a Reply