Renault back in business: “The engine has made a considerable step forward”

No, you are not dreaming: no concerns about reliability or human error spoiled the Sunday of the Renault in Monza (Italy). Daniel Ricciardo finished fourth, ahead of his teammate Nico Hulkenberg, enough to give the French manufacturer its best result since its official return in 2016! 

The French supporters even had to pinch themselves when they discovered Nico Hülkenberg overtaking the outside of the Ferrari de Sebastian Vettel at the level of the second chicane:

Daniel Ricciardo, as radiant as ever, had a real reason to be positive. “Finally, we get what we deserve.” It's a big day for us. I am very satisfied ", he rejoiced on the radio, before uttering words only valid in Italy. “Pizza, pizza, pizza, hehe, thank you!” ".

The Losange, moribund after the summer break, returns on the heels of McLaren in fourth place in the Manufacturers' championship. The English are now only 18 points ahead of the French. 

Cyril Abiteboul, at the head of Renault Sport Racing, was smiling in the Italian paddock. “There is emotion because it is a result which demonstrates progress. It was a perfectly executed weekend, from the start of FP1 until the last lap. It takes a lot of energy for our young team to execute perfectly on a weekend.

Checked flag

Daniel P4 / Nico P5
It's not a podium, but it's our best result and it's for you Anthoine. Of course it's for you.

#ItalianGP #RSspirit pic.twitter.com/Jhy13VvitU

- Renault F1 Team (@RenaultF1Team) September 8, 2019

The Director-General recognizes, however, that there remains “lots of work to do. We must remain extremely reasonable and humble. This desire to get closer to the top teams makes us want to take part in battles more regularly”, explains Cyril Abiteboul to Canal+

After giving permission to attack to Daniel Ricciardo, the positions froze on the track. “They had the intelligence to understand that it was a necessary result for the team. »

The next rounds could see a return to the soft underbelly of the peloton, Cyril Abiteboul is aware of this. « When we find ourselves in a situation where the car is a little less competitive, I'm afraid we will be faced with the same challenges as the other events. We see that the engine has made a considerable step. We need to do the same thing on the chassis. », he says.

Discover the full report and analysis of the Italian Grand Prix, produced by our special correspondents in Monza, in issue 2233 of AUTOhebdo, available tomorrow evening in digital version, and from this Wednesday on newsstands.