Renaults on the verge of the top 10: “Really disappointing”

Renault was counting on the arrival of Daniel Ricciardo to get involved in the fight for Q3 in Melbourne (Australia) this Saturday March 15. Needless to say, it was a failure! The two black and yellow cars finished their qualifying session in 11th and 12th places. 

It was just a matter of Nico Hulkenberg and Daniel Ricciardo enter the top 10. Exactly two hundredths for the German, and an additional one for the Australian. “Q3 was definitely within our reach, underlines Nico Hülkenberg, victim of an electrical problem at the end of Q2.

we had a small problem which cost us a shot at the top ten and I lost a bit of time on my first lap in Q2 through traffic and a lock-up.. but under these circumstances P11 is okay and I am happy that the car felt competitive so far. let's see what's going on tomorrow! #F1 #AusGP pic.twitter.com/Qv1Jp0Wwvz

- Nico Hülkenberg (@HulkHulkenberg) March 16, 2019

“This little problem is regrettable, because it costs us a place in the top ten. I lost a little time in traffic and locking a wheel on my first lap in Q2, but we showed that the pace was there and that we are competitive. We know that it is extremely contested and thattiny deviations can make all the difference."

While Nico Hülkenberg tries to reassure himself, Daniel Ricciardo is not as used to finding himself in the middle of the grid. “It's not ideal. It's funny how five hundredths could have made the day a lot more enjoyable. Five hundredths is a fraction of a second that we can get from the pilot's side. 

I admit my wrongs before criticizing the car. Coming out of the last corner to start my timed lap, I felt that the tires were a little cold. So, I started my effort without being completely confident. This is where I wasted time”, he analyzes.

The old pilot Red Bull continues to adapt to the French structure. « Personally, it was better than yesterday. During winter testing, I was really struggling with the brakes. It has improved. In the area of ​​suspensions, the car has also progressed. We are getting closer to what I want. 

Small positive point, Daniel Ricciardo will be able to choose the tires of his choice for the start of the race (6 a.m. French time, to follow live on CARhebdo.fr with live text).  “Oh, I hadn't even thought about it! It’s been quite a while since I participated in Q3… So I have three choices of erasers (medium, tender and super tender), OK. I imagine my engineer is already thinking about the strategy, I'll let him plan! »

The Sports Director Alan Stays don't beat around the bush. “ We were hoping to place both cars in the top ten, so the overall result is really disappointing. Daniel did not improve his time in his second stint. We thought he could find a few tenths more, which would also have kept him safe within the top ten. » Not sure if the tens of thousands of Australian fans will be as enthusiastic on Sunday.