54 GP RACING APRIL 2020
Renault has reset its horizons this season, having
capitulatedto the inevitable: its stated aim to
be challenging for world championships within
five years of re-acquiring ‘Team Enstone’ was
unachievable. Had its gameplan panned out,
it would have been there or thereabouts right
now. Instead it faces two huge and intertwined
challenges: building a more competitive car by
eliminating persistent flaws in the design process,
and convincing its marquee driver signing to stay
on as he comes to the end of his contract.
Daniel Ricciardo could still slot in at
Mercedes, Red Bull or Ferrari, even though
the lattertwo havetied Max Verstappen and
Charles Leclerc to long-term deals. But allthree
berths would likely involve Ricciardo having to
accept number-two status. Still, there are others
who wouldbe interested in having a tigerish
race-winner on their books – particularlyMcLaren, which held talkswith Ricciardo in
2018 and is now at a more attractivepoint on its
competitiveness trajectory than it was then.
The onus is now on Renault to come up with
a competitive enoughpackage to convince
Ricciardo to stay, a fact not lost on team
principal Cyril Abiteboul.
“There’s an exam coming soon enough, for him
and for us,” Abiteboul says. “Are we able to give
him a better car? Is he able to reassure himself
with us? I think he’s a loyal person – it was
difficult for him to leave Red Bull. He’s someone
who wantsto stay withthe team long term.
“I think he feels pretty good inour team,
althou gh it’s uptohi m to say so, because he’s
got a Latinside an d we’ve got a Latin side.
We allow him to be the person he wants to be,
withoutmany constraints, althoughthere has
to be professionalism on both sides. Itwoul d be
positive to continue, but to do that we have toshow him we can givehim the car he wants.”
Achieving thatoughtto be possible, but
realistically Renault can only aspire to fourth
place in the constructors’ championship while
the present regulations are in place, given the
firmly established strength of theleading trio.
And, while it has largely conquered the engine
issues that have held it back during the hybrid
era, other more entrenched problems have
resisted the additional investment Renault has
poured into the Enstone factory. Recognising
this prompted another reset atthe end of last
season when chassis technical director Nick
Chester was shown the door, to be replaced by
former Benetton, McLaren and Ferrari man Pat
Fry. Owing tothe vagaries of gardening leave,
though, Fry only started his job in February.
Dirk de Beer replaced chief aerodynamicist
Peter Machin in November.
That means this season’s car is largely the
work of the previous regime. Fry himself has said“THERE REALLY IS A CHANGE IN THEWAY WEWORK [NOW],IN THEPAST
AT ENSTONE, WHEN WE SAW SOMETHING IN A [RIVAL TEAM’S] CAR,
WE JUSTTOOK IT AND DIDN’T TRYTO UNDERSTAND ITTOO MUCH”
CYRIL ABITEBOUL54 GP RACING APRIL 2020
Renault has reset its horizons this season, having
capitulatedto the inevitable: its stated aim to
be challenging for world championships within
five years of re-acquiring ‘Team Enstone’ was
unachievable. Had its gameplan panned out,
it would have been there or thereabouts right
now. Instead it faces two huge and intertwined
challenges: building a more competitive car by
eliminating persistent flaws in the design process,
and convincing its marquee driver signing to stay
on as he comes to the end of his contract.
Daniel Ricciardo could still slot in at
Mercedes, Red Bull or Ferrari, even though
the lattertwo havetied Max Verstappen and
Charles Leclerc to long-term deals. But allthree
berths would likely involve Ricciardo having to
accept number-two status. Still, there are others
who wouldbe interested in having a tigerish
race-winner on their books – particularlyMcLaren, which held talkswith Ricciardo in
2018 and is now at a more attractivepoint on its
competitiveness trajectory than it was then.
The onus is now on Renault to come up with
a competitive enoughpackage to convince
Ricciardo to stay, a fact not lost on team
principal Cyril Abiteboul.
“There’s an exam coming soon enough, for him
and for us,” Abiteboul says. “Are we able to give
him a better car? Is he able to reassure himself
with us? I think he’s a loyal person – it was
difficult for him to leave Red Bull. He’s someone
who wantsto stay withthe team long term.
“I think he feels pretty good inour team,
althou gh it’s uptohi m to say so, because he’s
got a Latinside an d we’ve got a Latin side.
We allow him to be the person he wants to be,
withoutmany constraints, althoughthere has
to be professionalism on both sides. Itwoul d be
positive to continue, but to do that we have toshow him we can givehim the car he wants.”
Achieving thatoughtto be possible, but
realistically Renault can only aspire to fourth
place in the constructors’ championship while
the present regulations are in place, given the
firmly established strength of theleading trio.
And, while it has largely conquered the engine
issues that have held it back during the hybrid
era, other more entrenched problems have
resisted the additional investment Renault has
poured into the Enstone factory. Recognising
this prompted another reset atthe end of last
season when chassis technical director Nick
Chester was shown the door, to be replaced by
former Benetton, McLaren and Ferrari man Pat
Fry. Owing tothe vagaries of gardening leave,
though, Fry only started his job in February.
Dirk de Beer replaced chief aerodynamicist
Peter Machin in November.
That means this season’s car is largely the
work of the previous regime. Fry himself has said“THERE REALLY IS A CHANGE IN THEWAY WEWORK [NOW],IN THEPAST
AT ENSTONE, WHEN WE SAW SOMETHING IN A [RIVAL TEAM’S] CAR,
WE JUSTTOOK IT AND DIDN’T TRYTO UNDERSTAND ITTOO MUCH”
CYRIL ABITEBOUL