Emag wrote: ↑24 Feb 2026, 23:58
catent wrote: ↑24 Feb 2026, 23:51
API wrote: ↑24 Feb 2026, 22:30
Yes, the McLaren will be strong.

And it will have a legal engine, because if it were illegal, it wouldn't be able to start.
Now use that same logic vis-a-vis Ferrari's engine in 2019. It, too, repeatedly passed pre-session scrutineering and was deemed legal based on the compliance checks which existed at that point in time.
So, either you believe Ferrari's 2019 engine was perfectly legal, using the same logical process you articulated above.
Or, you believe Ferrari's 2019 engine was not perfectly legal, and therefore also believe compliance checks can be changed/altered by the FIA in order to better enforce the rules/regulations as they are intended.
If one subscribes to the latter interpretation, that would preclude one from deeming Mercedes' engine "legal" based solely on the fact that it apparently passes the existing compliance checks.
Ferrari's engine was legal until it wasn't. They got "caught", the FIA did not like it, and they were forced to change it
after the fact. That's how FIA operates so I don't understand why people are surprised time and time again. It was the same with the mini DRS and the whole flexi wings saga. If it passes the tests, for all intents and purposes, it is legal. Then it's up to the FIA to decide if they want to allow it or not, by introducing stricter or more indepth tests to take it away. This is how it happened with the mini DRS and how it happened with Ferrari 2019 PU as well.
If you write ambiguous rules/tests then that's on you as a governing body. This is F1. It should be taken for granted that when you write a rule to define how something should behave, the teams will only try to comply with "how it should not behave" to pass the test part of the rule.
I think there is even more nuance and each example is different from another. To be clear I am not saying the FIA act correctly, or have a clear definition of "illegal" or whatever. I am just reflecting on how they've treated each case and why I think they treat them differently. And in every single situation past and future, entertainment & money will always be a factor.
I think the FIA looked at the Ferrari engine differently because it was "deception" vs. "clever interpretation" of the rules for lack of better wording.
Everyone had wings that flexed and everyone passed the tests. So there was some lead time to change.
Mini DRS change was quicker if I remember correctly, because it was a clear immediate trick, used by fewer teams.
Reportedly Merc shared with FIA ahead of time and got the approval for whatever they might be doing now.