# @stem_antics on Instagram

- **Type:** Video
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/Dd2StEjvLNC
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/71131440-stem-antics-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/b1580881eb.jpg
- **Posted:** 2026-09-28T22:48:17.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** Stem Antics (@stem_antics) — https://gondola.cc/stem_antics

## Caption

Ferrari took the most conservative component on a Formula 1 car and made it spin.

The 2026 technical regulations retired DRS and introduced fully active aerodynamics: driver-selectable Z-mode for high downforce in corners and X-mode for low drag on straights. The rules define the start and end positions of the movable elements in detail, but say remarkably little about the path between them. Ferrari found the opportunity in that gap.

On a conventional wing, low-drag mode means reducing flap incidence and widening the slot gap. The SF-26 flap does something far more aggressive:

- The flap rotates beyond 180 degrees, flipping its aerofoil profile completely upside down
- In the inverted position, the flow over the element separates and the wing effectively stalls, collapsing both downforce and induced drag
- The central actuator was removed and relocated into a bulge on one endplate, leaving the centre of the wing unobstructed
- Regulations permit a single actuator, so the opposite endplate carries a failsafe mechanism that returns the wing to maximum downforce
- On closing, the flap passes briefly through vertical, acting as a momentary air brake

Team principal Fred Vasseur nicknamed it the Macarena after the mid-1990s dance, and the name stuck across the paddock.

The concept debuted at pre-season testing in Bahrain, ran in FP1 in Shanghai, and was removed before sprint qualifying over reliability concerns. The core difficulty was transient: front and rear flaps no longer returned to downforce mode at the same instant, shifting aerodynamic balance forward just as braking load transfer does the same, destabilising corner entry.

The wing made its race debut in Miami, where Red Bull arrived with its own rotating interpretation. McLaren tested a third version in Hungary.

The regulations described the destination. Ferrari engineered the journey.

#stemantics #aerodynamics #formula1 #motorsportengineering #fluiddynamics

## Stats

- **Views:** 15,049
- **Likes:** 218
- **Shares:** 0
- **Comments:** 2

## Tags

fluiddynamics, aerodynamics, motorsportengineering, stemantics, formula1

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