Mercedes, Alpine, and Sauber go big on Belgian GP upgrades

Mercedes, Alpine, and Sauber have shown up with the biggest upgrade packages for this weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix.

With Red Bull turning up in Belgium with no updates for the RB20 after introducing a major package last weekend in Hungary, it’s Mercedes who have caught the eye with a more substantial list of changes for Belgium – as have Alpine and Sauber.

Mercedes

The Brackley-based squad has shown up with several upgrades for its W15 for the last race before the summer break shutdown.

For the weekend, the diffuser has been tweaked with subtle changes made to its roof profile. The intention of this is to increase rear camber in the diffuser’s roof region, which “increases local flow acceleration which, in turn, increases local downforce and drag.

Alongside this, a revised floor edge wing with an additional flap element over the forward section has been introduced, dropping the local pressure behind the fence systems – this increases forward floor load.

The beam wing has also been changed as Mercedes has brought a single-element wing aimed at reducing local downforce and drag. Other circuit-specific changes include a low-camber, small-chord front wing flap, aimed at helping balance out running lower downforce rear wings.

On the Halo, Mercedes has also removed a flap element to reduce local downwash and, in turn, drag, as it alters the flow to the rear of the car.

Ferrari

The Scuderia have shown up for the Belgian Grand Prix with some circuit-specific trims available for their front and rear wings.

Aimed at lowering downforce at both ends of the car, the front wing flaps of the SF-24 have been “depowered”, with different trim levels available to allow for modulation.

Top and lower rear wing profiles have also been rolled out, in order to allow for lower downforce running at the rear.

McLaren

Like Ferrari, McLaren’s changes for Belgium are circuit-specific tweaks.

These changes include a lower-downforce rear wing assembly, aimed at reducing drag, with an “offloaded” beam wing to work in tandem to “trade downforce and drag efficiently”.

Low-drag rear brake duct furniture has also been tweaked to better cooperate with the new rear wing assembly and beam wing.

Alpine

At Alpine, the Enstone-based squad have shown up with the most updates of anyone. A new front wing includes re-profiled elements, with a focus on improving the balance range for low-downforce circuits.

A re-designed engine cover improves cooling efficiency with internal airflow the target, while new circuit-specific beam and rear wings reduce drag and improve the aerodynamic efficiency of the A524.

New rear brake inlet and exit ducts allow for better management of rear brake temperatures, while the wing mirrors have been revised in light of the changed engine cover and sidepod design.

These changes will allow for better air flow control and quality towards the rear of the car.

Sauber

Having shown up in Hungary with a significant upgrade pack, the Hinwil-based squad have kept up the momentum with more upgrades for Spa.

New mirror stays improve the airflow to the rear of the C38, while reworked floor fences will deliver more local aero load.

On the front wing, shorter chord flaps reduce the downforce generated in order to better balance the lower rear wing configuration being used for this race. To achieve this, Sauber has brought along a re-profiled rear wing upper flap.

A new beam wing has also been introduced to work in tandem with the tweaked front and rear wing designs.

VCARB

The Faenza-based squad has shown up with modified winglets on the rear corners, reducing downforce and drag efficiently.

A “low-incidence” biplane design for the beam wing sets out to do the same, while still providing low pressure to the diffuser.

On the rear wing, reduced camber, chord & incidence upper elements aim to achieve a lower drag level target.

Haas

At Haas, the American squad have kept their updates simple. On the rear and beam wings, less cambered profiles will be used, in order to reduce drag.

Red Bull, Williams, Aston Martin

These three teams have not made any changes to their car for the Belgian Grand Prix.