Ferrari finds a clever loophole, rivals scramble to copy it, and the FIA steps in to kill it. It is, at this point, practically a tradition. The governing body has officially banned Ferrari‘s exhaust winglet from Formula 1 for 2027, closing the gap in the technical regulations that the Scuderia so elegantly exploited this season.
What Ferrari Actually Did
During pre-season testing in Bahrain, Ferrari introduced what became known internally as the FTM, a tiny winglet mounted directly above the tailpipe. It used exhaust gases to generate additional rear downforce while also extending the effective length of the diffuser and smoothing airflow to the rear wing. Clever, legal, and almost impossible for rivals to simply bolt on.
The reason rivals struggled to copy it comes down to packaging. Ferrari’s engineers moved the differential as far rearward as possible, exploiting space beneath the deformable structure. Because the entire rear of the SF-26 was designed around this concept from the outset, competitors faced costly and time-consuming redesigns to follow suit. Some, including Mercedes, found a workaround from Miami onwards using a bracket atop the tailpipe, though it was a less potent version of the original idea.
The FIA Draws a New Line
The ban appears in the first draft of the 2027 technical regulations, ratified by the FIA World Motor Sport Council in Macau. Article C2.3.7 establishes a strict exclusion zone around the tailpipe, meaning no aerodynamic device can occupy that space next season. The FIA’s stated concern is preventing a costly development war in a grey area that was always going to attract increasingly extreme interpretations. Which is a perfectly reasonable position, even if the timing does raise an eyebrow or two given that it is Ferrari who benefits most from the current rules.
For context on how aggressively teams are pushing boundaries this weekend, Red Bull arrived in Austria with a seven-part upgrade package, including their own take on the exhaust winglet concept.
Ferrari Already Testing Life Without It
During Austrian GP FP1, rookie Dino Beganovic ran the SF-26 without the winglet for part of the session, while Lewis Hamilton continued to use it in the other car. The exercise appears to be a straight comparison test, gathering data for low-downforce circuits later in the year. Monza, where drag is the enemy and extra downforce from an exhaust flap becomes a liability, is the obvious candidate for the wingless configuration.
The Bigger Picture
Ferrari built something genuinely innovative, and the regulations are being rewritten around it. That is, depending on your perspective, either a compliment to their engineering department or a reminder that in Formula 1, being first is only an advantage until the rulebook catches up. Right now, with Mercedes and Ferrari locked in a tight constructor battle, every downforce innovation counts. Come 2027, this particular weapon gets confiscated from everyone.
