McLaren and Ferrari among the four teams impacted by FIA's new rear wing clampdown: Reports

McLaren and Ferrari are two of the four teams that can face the FIA rear wing clampdown. The F1 governing body, ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix, obtained footage of every team's rear wings and reached a stable ground to implement immediate action.

As a result of the clampdown, the teams can face significant downgrades in terms of performance during qualifying and racing—especially during DRS mode. However, Ferrari and McLaren aren't the only ones at it.

According to a report by The Race, Alpine and Haas have also made it to the FIA's list of suspicions among 10 teams. Although no team has been singled out by the FIA yet, the behavior of the rear wings at the pre-season testing in Bahrain and season opener in Australia raised suspicions.

Despite the suspicions, the FIA stated that the rear wings of all 20 cars were legal, and they followed the rules set by the governing body. With that said, the FIA understood that the flap opening up to a 0.75mm slot gap is also something that they cannot allow to be continued.

As a result, they are set to bring a tighter and more stringent rear wing flexibility to this weekend's Chinese Grand Prix. Following a discussion, they introduced a limit for the rear wing flap, which will now have to be reduced from 0.75 mm to 0.5 mm.

However, there will be a one-time tolerance for the teams, as reducing the 0.25 mm flap within a few days might look hard for teams amid the rush of Grand Prix races. Therefore, the rules will strictly apply to Japan, while China will have the same 0.75 mm tolerance.

---

What did Lando Norris say about allegations against McLaren?

The drivers shared their reactions after they were told about their team's involvement in the rear wing flexibility issue. McLaren driver Lando Norris felt the rear wing in the MCL39 was fine, and they didn't need to push over the limit as yet to go beyond the technical regulations and find performance.

Lando Norris of Great Britain and the McLaren F1 Team attends the press conference - Source: Getty

"We don't have to change anything," he said. "Ours is fine. In fact, ours is probably too good and we probably are not pushing the limits enough honestly."

The teams have been trying to configure the rear wing in such a way, so that it meets all F1 regulations while providing that extra bit of performance on track.

Amid the rear wing flexibility issue, McLaren emerged as the strongest team on the grid ahead of its competitors. The drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri were mighty in the recently concluded Australian Grand Prix.

Norris, who started the race from the pole, ended up winning the race. His teammate, Piastri, started from P2, lost position, and started from the back of the grid after he went wide and saw his car on the grass. Despite starting from the back, he ended his race in P9.