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Red Bull and Mercedes radical rear wing for the 2026 Monaco Grand Prix
Red Bull and Mercedes lead a wave of radical rear wing winglet designs at Monaco, exploiting the 2026 active aero ban to extract maximum downforce on the streets of Monte Carlo.
Teams Exploit Monaco's No-Active-Aero Rule with Radical Rear Wing Designs
The removal of active aerodynamics for the Monaco Grand Prix has triggered a wave of creative engineering across the Formula 1 paddock, with Red Bull and Mercedes among the teams to introduce striking new winglet configurations on their rear wings.
For the first time this season, F1 teams are prohibited from running moveable wings at Monte Carlo, owing to the absence of designated straight modes on the street circuit. With no activation requirements, teams have no need for the regular flap-switching mechanisms on either end of the car — the wing configurations remain fixed throughout the entire event.
Rather than treating the constraint as a limitation, several teams have identified a genuine performance opportunity. By re-engineering the areas previously occupied by activation mechanisms on the rear wing, they have been able to introduce bespoke additional winglets — compact aerodynamic elements that generate extra downforce while exploiting allowances within F1's aerodynamic regulations. Those rules afford teams certain freedoms within defined legality boxes, and the Monaco context has made those freedoms newly attractive.
Why These Winglets Only Work at Monaco
The key reason such designs are not viable under normal racing conditions is the complexity they introduce into the airflow. In a standard race weekend, the active aero system switches frequently between a high-downforce corner mode and a low-drag straight mode. Intricate mini winglets in the mechanism area would be counterproductive under those conditions — too sensitive and disruptive for the constant flap movement.
With everything locked in a fixed position for Monaco, however, those aerodynamic constraints disappear, and the performance gains on offer have proved compelling. As covered in our 2026 Monaco Grand Prix: all you need to know preview, the ban on straight mode is one of the defining technical characteristics of this year's race at Monte Carlo.
Who Has Gone the Furthest?
Red Bull's approach features two additional wing elements mounted on top of its standard central mechanism — a targeted, surgical addition to an otherwise conventional structure.
Mercedes, by contrast, appears to have gone considerably further. Their design represents what looks like a wholesale redesign, with the entire mechanism trimmed back and replaced by a complex set of wings — a far more ambitious interpretation of the regulatory freedom on offer.
McLaren is expected to run a similar concept, while Ferrari — at least in the specification seen so far — has not pursued this particular avenue of exploitation.
Meanwhile, Audi has used the fixed front wing configuration to address a different area entirely: the German manufacturer has taken the opportunity to remove the bulky mechanism fairings it has run on its front wing since the start of the season — a welcome weight and aerodynamic tidying exercise that would not have been possible with active aero in play.
Source: The Race