Max Verstappen has reportedly been observed testing an innovative Red Bull Racing rear wing concept that appears to take inspiration from Ferrari’s much-discussed “Macarena” active aerodynamic design, creating a new technical storyline in the Formula 1 development battle between the two top teams.
During pre-season running in Bahrain, Ferrari first introduced an experimental rear wing concept on the SF-26, a design initially seen on the car driven by Lewis Hamilton, with Charles Leclerc also later involved in evaluating the aerodynamic direction during simulator and track correlation work. The system immediately drew attention for its unusual behaviour on track.
The rear wing was seen transitioning into an inverted or “flipped” configuration when the Ferrari SF-26 entered straight-line efficiency mode. This mechanism is believed to enhance cornering downforce when required while significantly reducing drag on straights, offering a flexible balance between speed and stability.
Because of its distinctive motion, the concept quickly earned the nickname “Macarena wing” within paddock discussions. It briefly appeared during Free Practice 1 at the Chinese Grand Prix, although Ferrari opted to remove it for the remainder of that race weekend before continuing further development work.
More recently, Ferrari continued refining the aerodynamic concept in Monza, with Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc both contributing to evaluation runs as the Scuderia aim to determine whether the system can be safely and consistently introduced in upcoming Grands Prix.
Red Bull Racing responds with its own Macarena-style rear wing concept
According to paddock reports, Red Bull Racing has now developed its own interpretation of Ferrari’s active rear wing idea, with Max Verstappen reportedly seen testing the updated configuration during running at Silverstone.
RacingNews365 indicated that while Red Bull’s solution shares similar aerodynamic principles with Ferrari’s approach, there is a key structural and mechanical difference in how the system operates under load and during activation phases.
In Red Bull Racing’s version, a central support structure is believed to control a larger portion of the rear wing’s movement, whereas Ferrari’s system is understood to integrate its activation mechanism into the endplate architecture. This suggests two different engineering philosophies aimed at achieving similar gains in drag reduction and cornering efficiency.
While Ferrari have already trialled their concept in a Grand Prix weekend environment, it remains unclear whether Red Bull Racing will introduce Max Verstappen’s tested version in a competitive race setting in the near future or continue refining it through private testing and simulator correlation.
Lewis Hamilton comments on Ferrari’s rushed development approach
During the Chinese Grand Prix weekend, Lewis Hamilton expressed the view that Ferrari may have accelerated the introduction of the Macarena-style rear wing earlier than originally planned in their development schedule.
The Briton suggested that the Scuderia had not initially intended to run the upgrade until later rounds of the season, approximately around the fourth or fifth race, but acknowledged that the team made a strong effort to bring it forward for early evaluation.
Lewis Hamilton further reflected that while Ferrari’s engineering group successfully delivered the part to the track in time, the limited production quantity and early-stage nature of the concept may have made it premature for full race-weekend deployment, which ultimately led to its temporary removal from the car.
Despite this, Lewis Hamilton noted that the aerodynamic concept still showed promising performance characteristics and indicated that Ferrari would continue refining the design before reintroducing it once fully validated.
Ferrari and Red Bull Racing locked in aerodynamic development battle
The parallel development of active aerodynamic rear wing systems by Ferrari and Red Bull Racing highlights the increasing technical arms race in Formula 1, where even subtle gains in drag reduction and downforce management can significantly influence lap time performance.
With Lewis Hamilton and and his Maranello teammate both contributing to Ferrari’s ongoing aerodynamic development programme, and Max Verstappen actively involved in testing Red Bull Racing’s alternative interpretation, both teams appear committed to exploring flexible rear wing concepts that could define future performance gains in multiple race scenarios.
As the 2026 Formula 1 season development cycle continues, it remains to be seen which team will successfully refine and race-prove their version of the so-called Macarena rear wing concept first, and whether it will become a standard feature of next-generation aerodynamic design.
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