1
GP RACING JULY 2020 49
RENAULT’S UNCERTAIN FU TURE
If McLaren’s form is the headline selling point
for Ricciardo’s decision, it is the uncertainty
surrounding the futureof his current squadthat
is perhaps the most significant factor.
Two weeks after Ricciardo’s impending switch
was announced, Clotilde Delbos – Renault’s chief
financial officer and acting CEO –publicly stated
the company remains “committed to Formula 1”.
This followed team boss Cyril Abiteboul’s positive
suggestions that Renault would see the benefit of
F1’s new cost-control and (minor) performance-
balancing measures. Indeed, Delbos citedthe
new financial rules as“very g ood for us”.
But the underlying problem has not gone
away, which isthat the fulleconomic bite of the
pandemic and lockdowns are only just starting
to bear down. Renault has a history of leaving
F1 during times ofeconomic downturn, and so
there remains a significant chance the team in its
current guise may not be around next year. After
all, positive vocal commitments are often made
even when wheels are about to beset in motion
to the oppositeeffect. This applies to many
companies in many industries. Also, no team is
legally committed to F1 beyond 2020, given fresh
Concorde Agreements remain unsigned.
Renault is part state-owned, whereas McLaren
has considerable private resources onwhich to
draw for its new efficiency-driven future. Force
India/Racing Point has already established itself
as a leader in doing morewith less, which is the
challenge all F1 teams now face. McLaren can
also now demonstrate clear progress on the
track, while Renault has gone backwards and
(so far) failed to achieve the targets set out ahead
of its 2016 comeback.
Renault, which remains linkedto both Vettel
and a reunion with Alonso atthe time of writing,
was clearly irked by Ricciardo’s unexpected
decision to jump ship – Abiteboul didn’teven
say his driver’s name when commenting onthe
new s. The feeling is perhaps understandable.
After all, Ricciardo’sdecision to switch teams is
as damning an indictment of Renault’s stagnant
F1 status as it is an affirmation of McLaren’s
increasingly impressive renaissance.At the same time, a return to F1’s Class Awas
effectively closed to Ricciardo. Ferrari, despite
maintaining contact for several years now,
picked Sainz to partner long-term star Charles
Leclerc, and Red Bull is committed to giving
Alexander Albon a shot at keeping hisplace for- Sainz’s deal also ended any remote chance
of Lewis Hamilton leaving Mercedes at theend
of 2020, and rumours that Renault has sounded
out Valtteri Bottas about joining a team he was
linked to previously in 2016 only surfaced after
Ricciardo made his call to leave, so the chances
of a Mercedes ‘swap’ deal were always remote.
Ricciardo has given up effective lead-driver
status at a works operation, which may sound
odd but makes sense given the current climate in
the automotive industry – to which his current
team is inexorablytied.McLarenbeatRenaulttofo urthinthe2019
constructors’championshipandRicciardo
mustfeelthatupwardprogresswillcontinue...GP RACING JULY 2020 49
RENAULT’S UNCERTAIN FU TURE
If McLaren’s form is the headline selling point
for Ricciardo’s decision, it is the uncertainty
surrounding the futureof his current squadthat
is perhaps the most significant factor.
Two weeks after Ricciardo’s impending switch
was announced, Clotilde Delbos – Renault’s chief
financial officer and acting CEO –publicly stated
the company remains “committed to Formula 1”.
This followed team boss Cyril Abiteboul’s positive
suggestions that Renault would see the benefit of
F1’s new cost-control and (minor) performance-
balancing measures. Indeed, Delbos citedthe
new financial rules as“very g ood for us”.
But the underlying problem has not gone
away, which isthat the fulleconomic bite of the
pandemic and lockdowns are only just starting
to bear down. Renault has a history of leaving
F1 during times ofeconomic downturn, and so
there remains a significant chance the team in its
current guise may not be around next year. After
all, positive vocal commitments are often made
even when wheels are about to beset in motion
to the oppositeeffect. This applies to many
companies in many industries. Also, no team is
legally committed to F1 beyond 2020, given fresh
Concorde Agreements remain unsigned.
Renault is part state-owned, whereas McLaren
has considerable private resources onwhich to
draw for its new efficiency-driven future. Force
India/Racing Point has already established itself
as a leader in doing morewith less, which is the
challenge all F1 teams now face. McLaren can
also now demonstrate clear progress on the
track, while Renault has gone backwards and
(so far) failed to achieve the targets set out ahead
of its 2016 comeback.
Renault, which remains linkedto both Vettel
and a reunion with Alonso atthe time of writing,
was clearly irked by Ricciardo’s unexpected
decision to jump ship – Abiteboul didn’teven
say his driver’s name when commenting onthe
new s. The feeling is perhaps understandable.
After all, Ricciardo’sdecision to switch teams is
as damning an indictment of Renault’s stagnant
F1 status as it is an affirmation of McLaren’s
increasingly impressive renaissance.At the same time, a return to F1’s Class Awas
effectively closed to Ricciardo. Ferrari, despite
maintaining contact for several years now,
picked Sainz to partner long-term star Charles
Leclerc, and Red Bull is committed to giving
Alexander Albon a shot at keeping hisplace for
- Sainz’s deal also ended any remote chance
of Lewis Hamilton leaving Mercedes at theend
of 2020, and rumours that Renault has sounded
out Valtteri Bottas about joining a team he was
linked to previously in 2016 only surfaced after
Ricciardo made his call to leave, so the chances
of a Mercedes ‘swap’ deal were always remote.
Ricciardo has given up effective lead-driver
status at a works operation, which may sound
odd but makes sense given the current climate in
the automotive industry – to which his current
team is inexorablytied.McLarenbeatRenaulttofo urthinthe2019
constructors’championshipandRicciardo
mustfeelthatupwardprogresswillcontinue...