Williams summoned by stewards over wing footage

FIA investigation focuses on procedural violation amid heightened scrutiny of flexible wings

Williams faces scrutiny from Formula 1 stewards at the Chinese Grand Prix after failing to provide mandatory video footage of its wings within the required timeframe.

Technical delegate Jo Bauer referred the team to the stewards, but this procedural breach doesn't necessarily indicate any technical wrongdoing.

Procedural issue, not technical violation

The summoning comes amidst heightened attention on aero-elasticity in F1, especially after the FIA recently announced more stringent tests on rear wings to detect excessive flexing under load.

However, the current situation involves Williams' failure to submit required camera footage within one hour after practice concluded.

This breach pertains to a Technical Directive rather than a technical regulation violation.

The team hasn't been accused of running illegal components, merely failing to comply with the mandated reporting timeline.

Understanding wing flexibility

All F1 wings naturally flex under aerodynamic load, making it impossible to eliminate deflection entirely.

The critical distinction lies in how much flexing has been deliberately engineered and for what competitive advantage.

Teams have historically exploited static measurement requirements.

During the previous ground-effect era, Brabham's Gordon Murray pioneered a system using pneumatic struts that kept bodywork at legal height when stationary but compressed under load during racing conditions.

FIA monitoring system

The FIA introduced enhanced video checks at last year's Belgian Grand Prix to better assess wing flexing under real aerodynamic conditions.

High-definition cameras facing forward and backward monitor both front and rear wings, which feature strategically placed dots on endplates to measure element rotation.

Currently, these specialized cameras operate only during free practice sessions. Examination of various cars' onboard footage during FP1 in Australia reportedly prompted the latest testing regime changes.

Potential consequences

Stewards elected to delay Williams' hearing until Saturday morning in Shanghai, suggesting the matter isn't considered urgent.

However, some form of penalty appears inevitable to maintain the integrity of the monitoring system.

If Williams escapes punishment for this procedural breach, other teams might feel emboldened to withhold footage without consequence, undermining the FIA's enhanced scrutiny efforts.

The unprecedented nature of this case makes the severity of any potential penalty difficult to predict.