The F-duct explained. In 2010 McLaren found about 10 km/h of free speed, and the driver switched it on with his knee. A snorkel on the nose fed a duct into the cockpit. While the hole was open, the air simply vented; cover it, and a valve with no moving parts routed air out of a slot in the rear wing, stalling it: less downforce, less drag, more speed on the straights. Later McLaren’s drivers used an elbow, and at Ferrari Fernando Alonso used the back of his hand.
F1 banned it for 2011 and gave the drivers a button instead, DRS, which lasted fifteen seasons (2011–2025). In 2026 DRS is gone too, but the rule written because of the F-duct is still there: any device that alters the car’s aerodynamics through driver movement is forbidden (2026 Technical Regulations C3.2.2).
Sources: Motorsport.com; Motor Sport Magazine; RaceFans; Autosport; The Race; FIA 2026 Technical Regulations Section C (Issue 19).
Photo: Force India F-duct slot by Morio, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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