We could call it the brake duct battle. McLaren developed a system to control the temperature of the rear tyres which, especially on circuits with very hot asphalt, gave a significant advantage to the two papaya-colored cars. With Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, first and second in the drivers’ championship, the Woking-based team has pulled ahead in the Constructors’ standings with a 132-point lead over Mercedes.
Red Bull, however, still sees itself very much in the fight with Max Verstappen in the drivers’ standings, as the Dutchman is just 22 points behind the Australian leader. The Milton Keynes team began relentless pressure on the FIA to understand what is allowed or banned in brake duct designs.
The International Federation issued TD03, partially incorporating Red Bull’s concerns and highlighting what is prohibited in temperature management within the brake ducts, extending — as is customary — the clarification to all teams.
It’s no coincidence that Pierre Wache, technical director, and team principal Christian Horner of the Milton Keynes squad, after winning the race in Imola, toned down the controversy, choosing a very different communication strategy: “Yes, we’ve made some progress,” said the French engineer, “but we were surprised that others didn’t perform better than they did.”
The hint is very clear, even if indirect: the FIA clarification hit McLaren, who seemed to lose something in Imola with Norris finishing second and Oscar Piastri third, behind the four-time world champion phenomenon.
Red Bull’s engineers have done extensive work in developing the rear brake ducts, trying to isolate the high temperatures generated by the braking system (calipers and discs) to create a sort of fresh air chamber inside the two carbon ducts. They also redesigned the front ducts with a different airflow path through the corners.
The FIA made it clear that using fluids in the corners is prohibited. Some suggest McLaren had found a brilliant way to cool the air entering the duct chamber. According to The Race, one idea was that the water drivers drink during the GP could be used — a solution unlikely to be effective over an entire race. Others more realistically hypothesize that a small tube from the gearbox radiator circulated cooled water through the rear brake duct before returning to the radiator.
If this were the case, it would be a clever solution that, according to the FIA’s clarification, would violate article 11.5 of the F1 technical regulations, which prohibits brake cooling using liquid. Monaco will be a crucial test to see if the performance order has shifted. McLaren should be dominant, but Red Bull appears ready to keep up…
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