The Scuderia plans to evaluate the design in the sole practice session at the Shanghai International Circuit, with the session set to determine whether the concept remains on the car for the rest of the Sprint weekend.

The unusual wing first drew attention during pre-season testing in Bahrain, where Ferrari unveiled a rear wing that rotates dramatically rather than simply adjusting angle like a traditional design.

The upper flap effectively flips upside down, creating a larger opening for airflow to pass through and reducing drag on the straights.

Although the design was not used at the opening round in Melbourne, Ferrari has now brought the concept to China, where the circuit’s long back straight could make it a more suitable environment to evaluate its potential benefits.

Lewis Hamilton praised the team’s efforts to fast-track the development, revealing the component was originally scheduled to arrive later in the season.

“I’m so grateful for the team to work because it was actually supposed to be later down the line and they worked really hard to develop it and get it brought here,” Hamilton said on Thursday in China.

“So that for me is just, it’s great to see that the team are fighting, the team are pushing and chasing and really working overtime back at the factory to be able to bring the upgrades.

“That’s the name of the game.

 

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“Last year, I didn’t get to see the team’s full potential in that mode because we were focused on this year’s car.”

The wing attracted significant attention during testing due to its unconventional motion, appearing to rotate roughly 180 degrees as it changes configuration.

While the FIA has cleared the design as legal, its true performance impact remains uncertain.

Ferrari will therefore use the opening practice session in Shanghai to gather data before deciding whether it will feature in Sprint Qualifying later the same day.

Hamilton admitted that even within the team the wing’s name remains something of a running joke.

“I don’t know if it has an official name,” he said.

“Someone said Macarena…I have no idea why. It’s the flip-flop wing!”

Ferrari heads into the Chinese Grand Prix looking to close the gap to Mercedes after finishing third and fourth at the season opener in Melbourne.

George Russell led a Mercedes one-two finish there, underlining the performance deficit Ferrari is hoping to reduce through continued development.

For Hamilton, the arrival of upgrades such as the rotating rear wing is simply part of the ongoing development race under the new 2026 regulations.

“I think it’s really dependent on development, the development rate is pretty steep for everyone at the moment so people are going to be interested to see who brings upgrades over these next races,” he said.

“They do have a big, I mean you saw in qualifying it was eight tenths or something like that in the quali lap, and in the race I think it was between four and five tenths when they were in clear air which is a huge gap.

“So it’s really going to be interesting to see the development, we’re going to try and catch them up and I believe we can but I don’t know if it’s going to be a sure thing.”

2026 F1 Chinese Grand Prix – Schedule, how to watch, TV times & more