F1 Racing - UK (2020-03)

WORDSSTUART CODLING

PORTRAITRENAULT

DANIE L RICCIARDO

IN CONVERSATION WITH

Renault’sAussie star will be out of contract after 2020 so is likely

to be hot property on the driver market as this season unfolds,

but here heexplains why he remains “100%” committed to his

currentteam and that he believes he will get to swill champagne

from the inside of his black and yellow boot before too long...

“I DON’T HAVE ANYTHING

WRITTEN DOWN WITH

RENAULTBEYOND

THIS YEAR, BUT

I’M 100%COMMITTED

TO MAKING THISWORK”

With theexperience of last year, what would you

say you’ve learned and how has that informed

your preparations this season?

Just being in a familiar environment, it’s made

[me]... I’m going to say the word relaxed,

but not in a lazy way. I haven’t been kind of

running around like a headless chook, trying to

have meetings with my engineer andtrying to

understand each other’s lingo and remember

each other’s names and allthese sort of things.

I’ve established relationships.

Was there a process ofgetting yourfeet under

the table before introducing ideasfor change?

After Melbournelast year, I remember sending

Cyril [Abiteboul, team boss] quite a long email

with a whole list of things that we can do better,

but it’s not goingto turn around in one day or

one week –we have to put things in place. This

year, I want to come to the table with a plan

of action – justbe a bit more intelligent about

the way I bring things to them, and sometimes

taking action and initiative myself.

How do you set your targetsfor this year? Alain

Prost says theteam suffered a bit from that

previously: ‘this year we will score podiums, and

then this year we wantto be winning’ so do you

go in with a clear targetto be fourth again and at

the front of the midfield, or is it a bit more fluid?

It’s important to set targets. A teamtarget is to

get back to fourth. But you need to be fluid, and

you need to adapt – positive or negative. I feel

even last year, I came into the team and there

was still quite a few moving parts – personnel

coming in and out, some partsof the factory were

still under construction. I feelthis year my place

is more concrete. OK, Esteban [Ocon]’s new but

he did have an existing relationship with the

team, Pat [Fry]’s come in, [but] I do feel over the

course of the next month, sixweeks, there will be

a feeling of real stability. I feelthere ’s going to be

more actual progress instead of ‘this is changing

so in six months or so it will be better’.

A lot of changes at Enstone but it seems the car

you’ll be driving will bevery similarto last year’s...

I think that’s where you have toprobably just

recognise the sport and the level of competition

you’re dealingwith. Things take time. And I

think having, let’s say, an evolution of a 2019

car is the smartest way for us to make progress.

Everyone wantsthe m iracle, but we’re not in a

position to do that, realistically. It’s been a long

time since the team won, so that formula needs

to be built up with a proper foundation. I trust

this process; I think it’s the smartest way todo it.

Will it give us a win in Melbourne? No, probably

not. But I don’t think the crazy approachwou ld

give us a win inMelbourne either.

How do you see the relationship with Esteban

panning out? He had a fairly fraught time at his

previousteam [Force India] and there was a

famous radio quote from you about ‘I don’t

like the look of his face’...

[Laughs] I think that was in Budapest! I was

quite angry after FP2 I think...

And also he’s French in a Frenchteam as well,

so there’s a bit of a nationality thing there.

Are there any ground rules that you’re goingto

try to lay down?

I don’t want tolay an y rules down from day

one, because I think already that will create a

tension – like you’re anticipating something.

When I joined Red Bull, Mark [Webber] and

[Sebastian] Vettel came to blows a few times,

so a lot of people were like ‘are you going to

have blows with Vettel?’ But the way I saw it,

Mark and Vettel had their own relationship,

that’s not my relationship, so I need to establish

something. I need to create something for myself

with Ocon. I’m prepared for competition, but

I’m not prepared for fun and games. If down the

track fun and games appear, then I’ll deal with

it. I’m certainly coming in with open mind and

positivity. I think it’s our best intention to tryto

ge t this team in a good place before they start

losing energy focused on managing us.

You’re one of the lasttop-line drivers out of

contract at the end of this season, and it’s easy

to imagine a scenario where Mercedes,Ferrari

and Red Bull are all interested in you. Do you see

this as an important yearfor your career? The

next commitment you make is quite significantto

test your ambitionto become world champion.

It is. I don’t have anything written down

with Renault beyond this year, but I’m 100%

committed to making thiswork. I haven’t

thought about scenarios yet of being somewhere

else. I do feel like last year was a bit of an

unknown. But I do feel this year there is much

more in place to get thisthing on the right track,

and to tick some of the boxesthat I thought

we would tick when I signed the contract. I do

believe there is a ‘shoey’ in here somewhere in a

yellow car. I do believe that, so I’m certainly all-

in to make those things come to fruition.

80 GP RACING MARCH 2020

202 0 SEASON PREVIEW

WORDSSTUART CODLING

PORTRAITRENAULT

DANIE L RICCIARDO

IN CONVERSATION WITH

Renault’sAussie star will be out of contract after 2020 so is likely

to be hot property on the driver market as this season unfolds,

but here heexplains why he remains “100%” committedto his

currentteam and that he believes he willget to swill champagne

from the inside of his black and yellow boot before too long...

“I DON’T HAVE ANYTHING

WRITTEN DOWN WITH

RENAULTBEYOND

THIS YEAR, BUT

I’M 100%COMMITTED

TO MAKING THISWORK”

With theexperience of last year, what would you

say you’ve learned and how has that informed

your preparations this season?

Just being in a familiar environment, it’s made

[me]... I’m going to say the word relaxed,

but not in a lazy way. I haven’t been kind of

running around like a headless chook, trying to

have meetings with my engineer andtrying to

understand each other’s lingo and remember

each other’s names and allthese sort of things.

I’ve established relationships.

Was there a process ofgetting yourfeet under

the table before introducing ideasfor change?

After Melbournelast year, I remember sending

Cyril [Abiteboul, team boss] quite a long email

with a whole list of things that we can do better,

but it’s not goingto turn around in one day or

one week –we have to put things in place. This

year, I want to come to the table with a plan

of action – justbe a bit more intelligent about

the way I bring things to them, and sometimes

taking action and initiative myself.

How do you set your targetsfor this year? Alain

Prost says theteam suffered a bit from that

previously: ‘this year we will score podiums, and

then this year we wantto be winning’ so do you

go in with a clear targetto be fourth again and at

the front of the midfield, or is it a bit more fluid?

It’s important to set targets. A teamtarget is to

get back to fourth. But you need to be fluid, and

you need to adapt – positive or negative. I feel

even last year, I came into the team and there

was still quite a few moving parts – personnel

coming in and out, some partsof the factory were

still under construction. I feelthis year my place

is more concrete. OK, Esteban [Ocon]’s new but

he did have an existing relationship with the

team, Pat [Fry]’s come in, [but] I do feel over the

course of the next month, sixweeks, there will be

a feeling of real stability. I feelthere ’s going to be

more actual progress instead of ‘this is changing

so in six months or so it will be better’.

A lot of changes at Enstone but it seems the car

you’ll be driving will bevery similarto last year’s...

I think that’s where you have toprobably just

recognise the sport and the level of competition

you’re dealingwith. Things take time. And I

think having, let’s say, an evolution of a 2019

car is the smartest way for us to make progress.

Everyone wantsthe m iracle, but we’re not in a

position to do that, realistically. It’s been a long

time since the team won, so that formula needs

to be built up with a proper foundation. I trust

this process; I think it’s the smartest way todo it.

Will it give us a win in Melbourne? No, probably

not. But I don’t think the crazy approachwou ld

give us a win inMelbourne either.

How do you see the relationship with Esteban

panning out? He had a fairly fraught time at his

previousteam [Force India] and there was a

famous radio quote from you about ‘I don’t

like the look of his face’...

[Laughs] I think that was in Budapest! I was

quite angry after FP2 I think...

And also he’s French in a Frenchteam as well,

so there’s a bit of a nationality thing there.

Are there any ground rules that you’re goingto

try to lay down?

I don’t want tolay an y rules down from day

one, because I think already that will create a

tension – like you’re anticipating something.

When I joined Red Bull, Mark [Webber] and

[Sebastian] Vettel came to blows a few times,

so a lot of people were like ‘are you going to

have blows with Vettel?’ But the way I saw it,

Mark and Vettel had their own relationship,

that’s not my relationship, so I need to establish

something. I need to create something for myself

with Ocon. I’m prepared for competition, but

I’m not prepared for fun and games. If down the

track fun and games appear, then I’ll deal with

it. I’m certainly coming in with open mind and

positivity. I think it’s our best intention to tryto

ge t this team in a good place before they start

losing energy focused on managing us.

You’re one of the lasttop-line drivers out of

contract at the end of this season, and it’s easy

to imagine a scenario where Mercedes,Ferrari

and Red Bull are all interested in you. Do you see

this as an important yearfor your career? The

next commitment you make is quite significantto

test your ambitionto become world champion.

It is. I don’t have anything written down

with Renault beyond this year, but I’m 100%

committed to making thiswork. I haven’t

thought about scenarios yet of being somewhere

else. I do feel like last year was a bit of an

unknown. But I do feel this year there is much

more in place to get thisthing on the right track,

and to tick some of the boxesthat I thought

we would tick when I signed the contract. I do

believe there is a ‘shoey’ in here somewhere in a

yellow car. I do believe that, so I’m certainly all-

in to make those things come to fruition.

80 GP RACING MARCH 2020

202 0 SEASON PREVIEW