FIA closes Ferrari exhaust winglet loophole for 2027
NXTbets Pro | Published On: June 29, 2026
FIA rule change
The FIA has revised the 2027 Formula 1 technical regulations to shut down Ferrari-style exhaust wing solutions. The new wording creates an exclusion zone around the tailpipe area, and Article C2.3.7 blocks bodywork from occupying that space. The update also tightens rules around exhaust-support structures and similar tailpipe-bracket solutions. The governing body published the latest 2027 rules after ratification by the FIA World Motor Sport Council in Macau.
The move reaches beyond one team. Mercedes, McLaren and Red Bull developed similar interpretations that will also be blocked in 2027. The FIA said the revision is aimed at stopping like-for-like concepts from developing further and spreading across the grid. That is the clearest signal in the rule rewrite. The governing body has moved to close off a design path that teams had found useful in the pursuit of rear performance. The language now leaves little room for a small aerodynamic add-on around the exhaust to survive.
Ferrari winglet design
Ferrari introduced the concept during pre-season testing in Bahrain. The solution used a small winglet mounted above the exhaust tailpipe on the SF-26. Its purpose was clear. The device was designed to increase rear downforce and improve airflow. Under the existing 2026 Formula 1 regulations, the concept stayed legal.
Ferrari has kept evaluating whether to run the device at every circuit in 2026. The team has already mixed and matched the setup in practice. During Austrian Grand Prix practice, Ferrari tested the concept without the winglet, with Lewis Hamilton’s car keeping it and Dino Beganovic’s car running without it. That split approach shows the team is still weighing the trade-off between the extra aerodynamic help and the different track demands it faces from one venue to the next.
The winglet sat in a sensitive part of the car’s rear structure. That made it valuable. It also made it vulnerable once the rule makers took a closer look. The FIA’s 2027 rewrite now targets that same area with more precision. A device that fits above the exhaust tailpipe no longer has the same freedom under the next set of technical rules.
FIA grid impact
The wider impact reaches the whole Formula 1 field. The FIA has already tightened related rules after Mercedes and other teams found a separate exhaust-tailpipe bracket loophole earlier in the season. That earlier adjustment set the tone for the new 2027 language. The latest revision goes further. It bars bodywork from the exhaust area and limits support structures that could be used to recreate the same effect by another route.
That matters because this is a familiar pattern in Formula 1. One team finds a legal opening, rivals look for the same gain, and the rulebook changes when the concept spreads. Ferrari’s winglet fit that cycle. So did the similar interpretations developed by Mercedes, McLaren and Red Bull. The FIA has now cut off the path before it becomes a broader trend in the next rules cycle.
The timing also leaves Ferrari in a position of transition. The team can still run the concept under 2026 rules, but the 2027 version closes the door. That gives the current season a short runway and puts a clear limit on what comes next. The message from the FIA is direct. Exhaust-area bodywork will not be a development battleground in 2027.
