Laurent Mekies insists Red Bull did not copy Ferrari: “We had the idea at the end of 2025”. Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies defends the team’s “Macarena” rear wing concept.

Red Bull “dances” back into the spotlight with Macarena wing

Already during the Silverstone test, Red Bull caught the attention of technical observers with the use of a rotating rear wing concept, immediately drawing comparisons to a similar solution first seen on Ferrari’s car during the Barcelona winter testing sessions.

In Miami, both Ferrari and Red Bull arrived with what has been nicknamed the “Macarena” wing, although the systems operate in slightly different ways when it comes to rotation. Despite the differences, the goal remains the same: reducing drag and gaining valuable top speed on the straights.

Max Verstappen’s second place in qualifying with the RB22 marked a clear step forward compared to the previous three races, reassuring Red Bull that they are moving in the right technical direction.

Red Bull’s “Macarena” is not a Ferrari copy

Laurent Mekies strongly defended Red Bull’s development work, telling Sky Deutschland that the team did not copy Ferrari’s concept.

“What I can say for sure is that our guys designed the wing without ever having seen Ferrari’s version before. So you can’t say who thought of it first. We invented it ourselves, independently of what others have done. We already had this idea at the end of last year, and that’s when we started working on it.”

Red Bull development moving in the right direction

Mekies also gave an overall update on Red Bull’s recent upgrades and development progress.

“The team did a fantastic job. After Japan, we knew we had a lot of work ahead of us to understand the issues we were facing. We completely reworked the car. We don’t think we’ve solved everything yet, but we are definitely moving in the right direction.”