McLaren has confirmed it will not run its rotating H-wing rear wing concept at this weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix in Madrid.
The Woking-based team debuted its own interpretation of the rotating rear wing in practice at the Hungarian Grand Prix before testing it further at Zandvoort.
The system finally ran in competition at the Italian Grand Prix in Monza, where low-drag setups offer the greatest lap time advantage.
McLaren’s H-wing works by rotating 180 degrees between Corner Mode and Straight Mode, helping to reduce drag significantly on long straight sections.
Ferrari pioneered the rotating rear wing concept during winter testing, with several teams subsequently developing their own versions of the system.
McLaren has decided to keep the H-wing on its low-drag wing package rather than retroactively fitting the system to its higher downforce configurations.
At the new Madring circuit, which makes its Formula 1 debut this weekend, McLaren will instead run the rear wing introduced at Zandvoort, featuring striking sculpted endplates.
The team made a calculated decision to prioritise production resources for Monza, where drag reduction yields a far greater lap time benefit than on twistier layouts.
The H-wing name is a nod to the letter H in the Etihad logo that adorns the MCL40’s rear wing, continuing a tradition set by the team’s famed 2010 F-duct, named after the F in Vodafone on the nose.
McLaren now plans to bring the H-wing back for the high-speed Baku street circuit at the end of September, a track that similarly rewards top speed and efficiency.
The team is also working on a new iteration of its higher downforce wing, built from the ground up to incorporate the rotating rear wing actuator for future events.
Racing Bulls, which also debuted a rotating rear wing of its own at Monza, will likewise leave the system at home for Madrid, with plans to reintroduce it later in the season.
McLaren arrives in Madrid as one of the frontrunners for victory, buoyed by back-to-back wins for Lando Norris at the Hungaroring and Zandvoort circuits.