Tech F1i: Chinese GP tech analysis

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Being nosy at Red Bull

The open nose on the RB13 certainly created a stir when Red Bull unveiled its latest F1 challenger. It was supposed that the air entering the hole was vented out right behind the thumb tip and not channelled towards the ‘S’-duct system, nor inside the cockpit.

This is now confirmed thanks to the image above, though previous pictures had already been floating around. By reducing the frontal surface that blocks the airflow, the aperture optimises the air flowing above the neutral centre section of the front wing and towards the bigger barge-boards.