48 GP RACING JULY 2020
LEAVING THE GLORYTO ESTEBAN
One of the most interesting aspects of Ricciardo’s
decision is that by choosing to leave Renault at
the end of 2020 he will be exiting a team that
has just installed a highly rated young star in
Esteban Ocon. Ricciardo left Red Bull just as
Max Verstappen was beginning to gain a decisive
upper hand at that team, and some will no doubt
suggest this is a version of history repeating itself.
That would be rather disingenuous tocars effectively inservice through2021 as a
coronavirus cost-saving measure. The MCL35
has even been granted dispensation to be altered
to fit theMercedesengineit was not designedto
house. Indeed, Toto Wolff hasalready stated that
his operation’s sole “risk” regarding this new
arrangementis th at McLaren could becomea
direct competitor...
The big unknown in all of this from
Ricciardo’sperspective is justwhere McLaren
sits in t he current competitive order.
Judgingby f orm andcar behaviour inpre-
season testing,the 2020 McLarenlooks to be
ahead of the Renault RS20,but behind present
Mercedescustomer RacingPoin t (soon to
becomeAston Martin), which appears to be
leading the way in the midfield withits Mercedes
W10-inspired design.
The aban donment ofthe Au stralianGrand
Prix before it began means we have no
unequivocal evidence to support this picture
yet. Nevertheless,Ricciardo has clearly se en
somethingin McLaren’s makeup, even if he
insists there was no singlefactor in his decision
to leave Enstone andhead for Woking.2
Ricci ardo given Renault’s 2020 line-up hasn’t
raced yet thanks to the pandemic delays. But
Renault has long targeted Ocon. He was in and
around the operation as far back as 2016, when
as newly crowned GP3 champion he became
the squad’s reservedriver despite hisMercedes
ties, and Renault subsequently jettisoned Nico
Hülkenberg to bring Ocon in on a two-year deal
despite Hülkenbergenjoying a decent 2019season alongside Ricciardo.
In the past ten years only once, in 2011,
have the Enstonesquad’s drivers finished the
season with similar points totals, so it may well
be that Ricciardo balancedthis against Ocon’s
potential, the team’s keenness to bring Ocon in,
and Ricciardo’s own lucrative deal ending soon,
and made adecisive call given there is so much
positivity surrounding McLaren.“McLAREN CAN ALSO
NOW DEMONSTRATE
CLEAR PROGRESS ON
THE TRACK, WHILE
RENAULT HAS GONE
BACKWARDS”
PICTURES:MARKSUTTON;ANDYHONE48 GP RACING JULY 2020
LEAVING THE GLORYTO ESTEBAN
One of the most interesting aspects of Ricciardo’s
decision is that by choosing to leave Renault at
the end of 2020 he will be exiting a team that
has just installed a highly rated young star in
Esteban Ocon. Ricciardo left Red Bull just as
Max Verstappen was beginning to gain a decisive
upper hand at that team, and some will no doubt
suggest this is a version of history repeating itself.
That would be rather disingenuous tocars effectively inservice through2021 as a
coronavirus cost-saving measure. The MCL35
has even been granted dispensation to be altered
to fit theMercedesengineit was not designedto
house. Indeed, Toto Wolff hasalready stated that
his operation’s sole “risk” regarding this new
arrangementis th at McLaren could becomea
direct competitor...
The big unknown in all of this from
Ricciardo’sperspective is justwhere McLaren
sits in t he current competitive order.
Judgingby f orm andcar behaviour inpre-
season testing,the 2020 McLarenlooks to be
ahead of the Renault RS20,but behind present
Mercedescustomer RacingPoin t (soon to
becomeAston Martin), which appears to be
leading the way in the midfield withits Mercedes
W10-inspired design.
The aban donment ofthe Au stralianGrand
Prix before it began means we have no
unequivocal evidence to support this picture
yet. Nevertheless,Ricciardo has clearly se en
somethingin McLaren’s makeup, even if he
insists there was no singlefactor in his decision
to leave Enstone andhead for Woking.Ricci ardo given Renault’s 2020 line-up hasn’t
raced yet thanks to the pandemic delays. But
Renault has long targeted Ocon. He was in and
around the operation as far back as 2016, when
as newly crowned GP3 champion he became
the squad’s reservedriver despite hisMercedes
ties, and Renault subsequently jettisoned Nico
Hülkenberg to bring Ocon in on a two-year deal
despite Hülkenbergenjoying a decent 2019season alongside Ricciardo.
In the past ten years only once, in 2011,
have the Enstonesquad’s drivers finished the
season with similar points totals, so it may well
be that Ricciardo balancedthis against Ocon’s
potential, the team’s keenness to bring Ocon in,
and Ricciardo’s own lucrative deal ending soon,
and made adecisive call given there is so much
positivity surrounding McLaren.“McLAREN CAN ALSO
NOW DEMONSTRATE
CLEAR PROGRESS ON
THE TRACK, WHILE
RENAULT HAS GONE
BACKWARDS”
PICTURES
:MARKSUTTON
;AND
YHONE