Ferrari has adapted the SF-26’s FTM rear aerodynamic element for the 2026 Italian Grand Prix at Monza, with a modification that appears to serve a purpose extending beyond simple drag reduction. Alongside smaller lateral winglets, the Maranello engineers have introduced a prominent vertical slot in the central section of the device, potentially helping to reduce exhaust backpressure and recover a small amount of internal-combustion-engine efficiency.
During the opening day of activity at Monza, every Formula 1 team began configuring its cars for the exceptionally fast characteristics of the Italian circuit. With active aerodynamics having largely eliminated the need for the highly specialised front and rear wings traditionally associated with Monza, most teams have retained solutions broadly similar to those seen in Belgium and concentrated instead on smaller details.
Ferrari modifies the SF-26 FTM for Monza
Ferrari provides one particularly interesting example. The Scuderia has adapted the aerodynamic profile positioned around the exhaust outlet, a component designed to redirect airflow upwards at the rear of the car.
The solution has been integrated into the rear of the SF-26 since the beginning of the season and is known as FTM, or Flick Tail Mode. For Monza, Ferrari has revised it in two distinct areas.
First, the width of the two curved surfaces positioned on either side of the exhaust has been reduced. Second, a conspicuous vertical opening has been created through the central section of the profile.
The changes build on Ferrari’s broader effort to adapt the SF-26 FTM to Monza’s low-drag requirements, where even relatively small reductions in aerodynamic resistance can be valuable over the circuit’s extended full-throttle sections.
Smaller FTM winglets reduce drag at the cost of downforce
The objective behind reducing the two lateral elements is relatively easy to identify. Ferrari has also removed the two vertical fences normally fitted to those surfaces, reducing aerodynamic resistance while accepting a corresponding loss of downforce.
That trade-off is entirely consistent with Monza’s demands. Although the introduction of active aerodynamics has changed how Formula 1 teams approach low-downforce circuits, efficiency remains crucial at a venue dominated by long straights and high-speed running.
The more intriguing modification is the large slot in the centre of the FTM. Opening this section inevitably reduces some of the element’s aerodynamic effectiveness, but the most important consequence may occur elsewhere.
Why Ferrari’s FTM slot may be about exhaust backpressure
The central slot could help reduce the backpressure generated by the FTM around the exhaust outlet. In this interpretation, its purpose is therefore not primarily aerodynamic, even though changing the opening inevitably affects the airflow around the rear of the SF-26.
Two small horizontal profiles positioned above the area, close to the respective trailing edges, also appear to play a role. Their configuration seems intended to force a greater proportion of the exhaust gases to remain lower, helping guide them more easily through the newly opened central slot.
The standard FTM concept offers Ferrari an aerodynamic advantage by strengthening the downforce-producing effect of the SF-26’s overall rear aerodynamic system. However, that benefit comes with a potential compromise: the arrangement can slightly penalise the efficiency of the internal combustion engine.
That makes the Monza modification particularly interesting because the Scuderia is already focusing heavily on overall Power Unit efficiency at its home race. Ferrari’s broader approach is explored in our analysis of the SF-26 Power Unit and why its Monza development is about more than horsepower.
How lower exhaust backpressure can help the Ferrari engine
Opening up the exhaust area can reduce backpressure inside the exhaust manifolds. With less resistance as the gases leave the engine, the pistons require less pumping work during the exhaust phase, when burnt gases are expelled from the cylinders.
The potential gain is small, but it can allow the internal combustion engine to recover a degree of efficiency. At Monza, where the Power Unit spends so much of the lap under sustained high load, even a modest improvement can contribute to overall performance.
This means Ferrari’s FTM modification involves a more complex compromise than simply trimming aerodynamic load. The smaller outer elements reduce drag, while the central opening could also help the combustion engine breathe more efficiently by easing the resistance encountered by the exhaust gases.
Monza forces Ferrari to rethink familiar priorities
Monza continues to demand the same fundamental qualities it always has: low resistance, efficient power delivery and strong performance during prolonged acceleration. What has changed is the way modern Formula 1 regulations allow engineers to achieve those objectives.
Active aerodynamics may have reduced the need for the radical Monza-specific wing packages seen in previous generations, but it has placed even greater emphasis on optimisation elsewhere. Ferrari’s FTM illustrates that philosophy particularly well, with a seemingly small aerodynamic detail potentially influencing both the rear aero package and the efficiency of the combustion engine.
The concept also fits into a wider programme of detailed development around the SF-26, including Ferrari’s work on turbocharger efficiency within the ADUO-2 Monza specification. More analysis of the technical solutions appearing on the car throughout the season can be found in our Ferrari technical analysis section.
At the Temple of Speed, then, the engineering targets remain familiar even if the solutions have evolved. Ferrari’s modified FTM is another example of how the 2026 regulations have changed the methods available to Formula 1 engineers without changing Monza’s fundamental demand for maximum efficiency.
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