James Vowles, addressed the reaction to Ferrari’s innovative rear wing unveiled during the Bahrain tests, noted that its impact is still unclear, and emphasized that they will evaluate its efficiency in the short term before making development decisions.
illiams team boss James Vowles offered an initial assessment of Ferrari’s innovative rear wing that appeared during preseason testing in Bahrain, a technical solution that has drawn attention in the paddock for its unconventional design. Vowles explained that the design “was not on our radar,” and that the team will have to monitor how its effectiveness evolves to determine whether it influences their own development program under the new technical regulations.
Speaking in Sakhir, Vowles described Ferrari’s proposal as “interesting” and highlighted that this type of innovation sparks technical debate among teams. He stressed that the emergence of novel solutions comes with advantages and disadvantages and that, although some ideas may appear promising, it will take “around 24 hours” before performance data clearly indicates whether the technical direction of that wing proves beneficial for race pace or if it is simply an early experiment within an intensive testing phase.
Vowles explained that the technical evaluation process involves comparing simulator information, wind tunnel data, and real-world test results to determine whether an innovation delivers tangible advantages.
In this case, the fact that Ferrari’s solution involves a complete rotation of the upper rear wing element represents a different approach compared to more traditional DRS systems, and Williams aims to understand precisely how that mechanism affects aerodynamic drag and the car’s balance across different sections of the track.
In that context, the Williams director emphasized that the appearance of a new wing design in testing does not in itself determine a definitive competitive advantage, since these concepts must be validated within a broad and comparative data framework.
Vowles stated that “when you see something interesting, either we’ve all thought about it and have the results to show why we didn’t do it, or we didn’t think about it,” a view that reflects the complexity of innovation in modern Formula 1.
Williams’ approach in these early tests focuses on gathering useful information to correlate simulations with real on-track performance, thereby reducing technical uncertainties in the FW48 setup for official preseason testing and the start of the World Championship. Evaluating elements such as active aerodynamics, load management, and chassis response under different loads will be crucial aspects in guiding the future development of Williams’ single-seater.
Beyond assessing rival innovations, the Grove-based team prioritizes a deep understanding of its own systems and processes, aiming to mitigate performance gaps that may arise when competing against structures with greater experience under the new 2026 technical package.
The development dynamic in this early phase highlights that absolute pace comparisons are less relevant than the ability to interpret data and adjust design directions with agility.
With the start of the 2026 season scheduled in Melbourne, Australia, the technical observations gathered in Bahrain will serve as the foundation for Williams to refine its development plan and make informed decisions on whether to adopt or discard concepts such as the wing introduced by Ferrari before the first race of the calendar.