'Red Bull developed a trick to get more out of DRS'

Red Bull Racing holds the strongest car in Formula 1 in 2023. Max Verstappen raced past Lewis Hamilton's Mercedes in Saudi Arabia. That speed difference is not just down to the car's good fundamentals. Red Bull has developed a wing that handles the DRS very efficiently.

That writes The-Race.com. The Beam Wing of the RB19 of Verstappen and Sergio Perez is said to be developed so that little downforce is generated by the extra wing at the moment the top wing is open. It would make a difference of around 10 kilometres per hour to the other teams when the DRS is open, which explains the RB19's incredible overtaking speed.

In Saudi Arabia, most teams' upgrade package included a modified beam wing. This beam wing is the smaller rear wing under the big rear wing. The beam wing stands a little upright and directs the wind that has passed over an F1 car upwards. The practical advantage of this is for the rear driver, who can therefore follow better and suffer less from disturbed air.

The downside is that the upright beam wing also blocks air and thus reduces top speed on the straights. The suction under the RB19 is sublime, giving the team more room to 'play' with the rear wing. In the case of the beam wing, Red Bull has a more aggressive more upright wing than the competition, according to The Race.

Because of this more upright wing, the beam wing interacts with the diffuser and the upper wing. When the upper wing opens during DRS and the wind turns past the car, the beam wing stalls. That so-called stall causes the wing to lose the ability to generate downforce. Red Bull handles this well and has ensured that the beam wing creates less drag than other teams when the DRS is active.