Red Bull Ring: technical innovations from Ferrari and McLaren – Photo Gallery. Ferrari, McLaren, and Mercedes reveal new technical upgrades at the Red Bull Ring.

A first free practice session that showed a strong start from Mercedes, but also a McLaren team that, after initial setup and analysis laps—some with aero rakes—closed the gap to George Russell’s times with both Oscar Piastri and, surprisingly, Alex Dunne. Between Russell’s Mercedes #63 and the two McLarens, Max Verstappen’s Red Bull still made its presence felt. His teammate, however, finished in seventeenth position, just one-tenth ahead of Ferrari rookie Dino Beganovic. It was a mixed session for Ferrari, which couldn’t fully analyze data from the new floor. Lewis Hamilton’s session was also disrupted by gearbox issues that forced him repeatedly in and out of the garage. Despite this, there was plenty of on-track activity in the first 60 minutes, with several teams evaluating their latest upgrades.

Ferrari: SF-25 floor deeply revised for the Red Bull Ring
Yesterday we had already reviewed the changes Ferrari made to the floor. Many small modifications were implemented in key areas of the car. The entry of the Venturi tunnels was updated, with revised central vertical fences to better manage airflow under the floor. Another change involved the aerodynamic appendix extending from the outer edge along the floor’s ramp—already previously analyzed.

In addition to tweaks to the diffuser and the small side extractor—featuring three vortex generators and a new supporting structure designed to enhance outwash—Ferrari also revised the floor edge. This component, extending toward the opening in front of the rear wheels and inspired by a Red Bull solution, saw a minor shape adjustment. Furthermore, Ferrari altered the carbon fiber layup, a typical change to adjust flex characteristics. Lewis Hamilton debuted this spec, starting with a run equipped with large aero rakes behind the rear wheels. Dino Beganovic, after a first run with the old floor, switched to the new one before handing the car back for Charles Leclerc’s afternoon session.

Mercedes capitalizes early, while Red Bull and McLaren study updates
The Brackley-based team appeared to start with a better baseline than its rivals, showing strong single-lap pace and promising long-run simulations. Both George Russell and Kimi Antonelli placed in the upper part of the timing sheets and showed strong race pace with heavier fuel loads. The improved balance of the W16 is benefiting Toto Wolff’s team, which did not introduce new parts here and focused fully on optimizing the car setup.

In contrast, the session began with both the RB21 and MCL39 running aero rakes and flow-vis paint to analyze their latest updates. Max Verstappen’s floor and Oscar Piastri’s front suspension were both covered in green paint, while McLaren also ran rakes behind the front wheels to track airflow. Andrea Stella’s engineers also conducted comparison tests with the front wing introduced in Canada, which has been brought back for use at the Red Bull Ring.