Categories: F1 News, Reports and Race ResultsRenault

Renault eyes reduced gap to front in Hungary

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Renault is hopeful of getting closer to the front of the grid in qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix at a circuit which is less reliant on outright power.

The Renault power unit has been uncompetitive at recent races with the high-speed tracks in Canada, Austria and Great Britain showing up its deficiencies. However, head of trackside operations Remi Taffin believes the Hungaroring will allow Renault to close up on the likes of Mercedes and Ferrari.

"Hungary is very different to the previous three races on the calendar," Taffin said. "With so many low and medium speed corners and only two short straights, the emphasis is on low speed driveability and energy recovery rather than outright top speed and power.

"This type of track allows us to play out our strategies better so we hope to be closer to the front in qualifying and able to play a greater role in the race result."

And Taffin says improving reliability will be crucial to getting the most out of the power unit in future races.

"We’ve maintained a good PU reliability since the Spanish GP but we need to continue to strengthen it to keep watching our performance improve race after race. Both of these factors are critical in the tough conditions of Hungary so we hope to secure a good result to finish the first part of the season."

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.