Flip Flops & Macarenas - Ferrari are no longer the clowns of F1

Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton smile and wave while a girl does the macarena to the side of them - flip flops are dug into the beach behind them — Photo: © IMAGO

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Flip Flops & Macarenas - Ferrari are no longer the clowns of F1

Ferrari, Flip Flops & Macarenas - Watch out Mercedes

Matthew Hobkinson Lead Editor

F1 Editor & Journalist

Thursday 12 March 2026 18:55

Paul Rudd’s iconic Hot Ones meme went viral more than six years ago – how quickly time flies.

You know the one I mean. It’s here if not – but the one that goes: ‘Hey, look at us.’ [Sean Evans (Host): ‘Who would’ve thought?’]. ‘Not me!’.

‘What on earth has this got to do with Ferrari?’ I hear you ask. Well, let me- ‘And what about the flip flops?’ I shall get on to tha- ‘And the macarena??’ Okay that’s enough. Let me explain…

Article continues under video

Ferrari, for years now, have been the clowns of F1. That’s not my opinion, it’s fact. Laughable strategy calls, awful communication and downright absurd comments from those in charge.

But that all changed at the Australian Grand Prix when the Scuderia pounced on the opportunity to pit Lewis Hamilton under the VSC and deny Mercedes their first win of the-

Okay, they might still be working on the race strategy. But that’s a fallout from the legacy of the Ferrari clown era (TM) that saw them get rid of Riccardo Adami as Hamilton’s race engineer and fail to replace him until, well, still now.

So, I can forgive them for that, to some extent – mostly because they never would have won the race anyway. Have you seen the beast that Mercedes have produced this year?

But for all the talk of compression ratios and engines that don’t cause a 7.8 magnitude earthquake upon reaching fourth gear (sorry, Adrian) – Ferrari have done something else.

They’ve been aggressive.

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Ferrari are taking the fight to Mercedes

As Billy Beane said: “If we try to play like the Yankees in here, we will lose to the Yankees out there.”

I can only assume Fred Vasseur watched Moneyball over the winter break as they’ve done just that.

This isn’t to say that Ferrari can’t compete with Mercedes from a power unit perspective, of course they can, but it would be a bruising few years you’d imagine before they manage to get close.

And at Ferrari, if you’re not winning, you might as well be last. So instead, they’ve got creative.

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Hey Macarena!

The macarena, or flip-flop wing as Hamilton helpfully for the sake of my headline decided to call it in Shanghai, is going to be seen in action this weekend.

Ferrari will debut the Macarena wing competitively in Shanghai

We saw it in testing but here it comes for an actual, real-life race weekend. How exciting.

We of course have no clue if it’s going to make enough of a difference to catch up to Mercedes. Realistically it’s likely not going to be enough, but that’s not the point.

The point is that Ferrari are trying something different. F1 will always reward creativity (see Brawn, Button, 2009) …unless you are a Mercedes engine in 2026.

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As Adrian Newey said (just don’t Google it) ‘You read the rule book twice. Once to see what it says, then a second time to see what it doesn’t say.’

So why the hell not have your rear wing flip upside down when it opens. People far smarter than me would have spent hours back at Maranello in the wind tunnel testing it before deciding it was worth a gamble.

And what a gamble it is, by the way. If it backfires there is very little upside. Remember the Mercedes zeropod concept? The less said about those the better.

The Silver Arrows might well still win it all this year in both the drivers’ (George) and constructors’ championships, but for the first time in a long time it feels as if Ferrari have got their act together.

Send out the clowns

I will stress that they simply have to be more ruthless with their race strategy. Not even from a pride perspective but so that Carlo Santi doesn’t become the second Ferrari race engineer in as many years to be told to go and get a hot caffeinated beverage.

Riccardo Adami (R) and Lewis Hamilton (L) have parted ways

For all the good that they might have done off the track, it has to carry over when the lights go out.

Nobody knows how reliable these cars are going to be across a full race season – and Mercedes might still hit a monumental brick wall in June.

Ferrari need to keep putting Mercedes under pressure if they have got any chance of delivering a first title since 2008.

But here we are after the first race weekend with a strange feeling. One of optimism.

So as Paul Rudd said six years ago (no you shut up this is a brilliant hook), who would’ve thought we’d be here after the shambles of last year? Not me.

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Written by

Matthew Hobkinson - Lead Editor

After four years working for a Lloyd's of London insurance syndicate, lockdown gave Matt the chance to chase a career in sports journalism - he hasn't looked back. Matt has found a home here at GPFans where he can showcase the weird and wonderful world of F1 to the millions of fans around the world who are just as passionate as he is about the best sport in the world.

View full biography

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