AlphaTauri’s new EXTREME upgrade might prove Daniel Ricciardo’s return to F1 fruitful

Alpha Tauri is all set to debut new rear wings and new driver at the Hungarian GP.

AlphaTauri’s new EXTREME upgrade might prove Daniel Ricciardo’s return to F1 fruitful

AlphaTauri has recently upgraded its AT04 Formula 1 car in the Hungarian Grand Prix with an aggressive rear wing configuration that incorporates a fresh interpretation of the upper flap attachment. As there were fewer exposed edges, there was less possibility for tip vortices to form, which the aerodynamicists could then incorporate into the car’s rear to increase downforce building. This was done to lessen the turbulence generated by the rear wing.

The regulations controlling rear wing design in 2022 made an effort to stop this, but they were unable to stop the engineers’ ingenuity in finding ways to increase the wing’s effectiveness. The redesigned wing of the AlphaTauri appears to be the most extreme configuration yet, as the upper wing has nearly completely separated from the endplate to reveal the wing tips. To maintain that tip exposure, the connection points to the main plane have been shifted somewhat inboard. This will cause vortices to form as the high-pressure air on top tries to roll to the lower-pressure zone below. 

https://youtu.be/PR2uB5MqLCo

Even though the top flap’s front edge blends into the rest of the wing body, the Aston Martin rear wing is likely the most comparable to the AlphaTauri concept. The Alfa Romeo rear wing has a modest connection point strengthened by a metallic insert, but to achieve a comparable impression, the wing tip has been extruded down to become slightly more exposed.

FS Video

Related: Red Bull admits that cost cap pressure hampers the team’s upgrade efforts

Daniel’s ‘Road to Red Bull’ starts with his AlphaTauri debut at the Hungarian GP

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AlphaTauri’s rear wing [via Twitter]

After taking over for Nyck de Vries at AlphaTauri, Ricciardo, who started the season as Red Bull’s backup driver, will make a stunning comeback to racing at this weekend’s Hungarian Grand Prix. Ricciardo made it clear that his ultimate goal is to rejoin Red Bull, the team with which he won eight races over five seasons from 2014 to 2018. His return is widely seen as a means of applying force to the underwhelming Sergio Perez, who, despite claiming two victories, has only qualified for the third round at four of the first ten races of 2023. 

Sergio has also Crashed his RB19 in Free Practice 1 in Hungary only to add misery to his campaign. Red Bull’s team principal, Christian Horner, recently reaffirmed that Perez, who has a contract that runs through the end of 2024, will continue to be Max Verstappen’s teammate in 2019. However, Horner also suggested that Ricciardo might be in a position to achieve his “golden objective” in 2025.

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