Ferrari is placing its hopes on the technical directive in Barcelona to relaunch the SF25, but the key question is: what changes with TD018?
The Barcelona round marks a crucial moment in Ferrari’s season. On the eve of the Catalan weekend, team principal Frederic Vasseur highlighted the importance of the new aerodynamic regulation that will officially come into effect starting from the Spanish GP. “From here on, there will be a new regulation concerning the front wing, and all the teams consider this race a turning point because we don’t know how the others will react to this change,” Fred Vasseur explained to Sky Sport F1.
In this context of technical uncertainty, the Maranello team has chosen a methodical approach: “It makes sense to bring only the new front wing to get a clearer picture,” the team principal added, implying that further developments may come only after assessing the effectiveness of the new configuration on track.
FIA crackdown: Technical Directive 018 comes into force
The regulatory change referred to by Fred Vasseur is contained in Technical Directive 018, which introduces stricter requirements on front wing flexibility. As of May 28, 2025, the day after the Monaco GP, more severe limits on the vertical deformation of front aerodynamic appendages have come into effect:
Under symmetrical load, the wing may flex no more than 10 mm (previously the limit was 15 mm).
Under load on just one side, the limit is now 15 mm (down from 20 mm).
As for the flaps, the allowed flex at their rear edge has been reduced from 5 mm to 3 mm when subjected to a point load of 60N.
This FIA clampdown aims to reduce the use of so-called “flexi-wings,” which can significantly alter aerodynamic efficiency depending on speed, offering an advantage on straights without compromising downforce in corners. Teams are thus required to design stiffer solutions in line with the new thresholds, and for this reason, many have identified Barcelona as the first true technical test of 2025.
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