A Woking based team member has been dispatched on a 9,000 kilometre race from Britain to Suzuka.

He must reach the Japanese circuit in about 21 hours, in order to beat the parc ferme deadline so that Lewis Hamilton can be back up and running with the MP5-25′s new rear wing for qualifying and the race.

The Briton broke the new wing’s left endfence in his morning practice crash, and the only other version in Japan is fitted to Jenson Button’s sister car.

When Hamilton returned to the track with 9 minutes of the afternoon session remaining, his car was fitted with the old wing as he drove to the 13th quickest time.

At the same time, a team member had been dispatched from the UK to bring new endplates to Suzuka in his hand-luggage.

“We can repair the wing with the new end plates,” team boss Martin Whitmarsh is quoted by Auto Motor und Sport.

At the track, Hamilton’s mechanics are also facing a long night.  The 25-year-old’s chassis has also been damaged, and – after a patch-up job for the few afternoon practice laps – a new car will be built up overnight.

Mercifully, Jenson Button’s similar Degner spin did not result in contact with the tyre barrier, and Michael Schumacher and others also had moments in the same section.

“The bumps in the first part are worse than last year,” said Sebastian Vettel, despite the organisers having modified the kerbs after last year’s multiple crashes there.

Team boss Christian Horner confirmed the news to Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport.

“The reason is simple,” he said. “The wing without the F-duct is more efficient (in Hungary).”

The report also said Ferrari is not convinced the F-duct is the best solution for the tight and twisty layout, experimenting with one car not running the downforce-stalling device in morning practice.

Williams’ Rubens Barrichello was surprised when he learned that some teams are not convinced about the F-duct at the Hungaroring.

“For sure we are starting with the F-duct. After that, we’ll see,” he said.

Another talking point in Hungary is the flexible front wings photographed on the Red Bull and Ferrari cars last weekend at Hockenheim.

“I am not saying they are doing something illegal,” McLaren team boss Martin Whitmarsh is quoted as saying.

“But the fact is that the endplates are touching the ground,” he said, apparently after seeing the slow-motion video captured by FOM of the Red Bull cars in morning practice.

“On the Red Bull, these end plates are even protected with a shield. We can’t imagine how it’s getting that low,” added Whitmarsh.