Headcount limit soon required for F1 - Abiteboul

Renault Sport F1 boss Cyril Abiteboul believes Formula 1 will eventually require a headcount cap to prevent teams from once again growing too large.

The French outfit, which is in its second season as a works team after taking over Lotus at the end of 2015, is currently in the process of ramping up its recruitment efforts.

Renault is on a five-year plan to bring itself back to the forefront of Grand Prix racing, and is progressively adding personnel to its various departments.

"We have grown a lot in the engineering/technical area, and what needs to happen now is to have growth that is compatible with the engineering potential – like the design office, in production, where we are almost too small and almost delaying what aero is capable of producing," Abiteboul told Motorsport.com. 

But the expansion of the team's facilities and human resources can't be unbounded, insists the Frenchman. And the same should apply to all F1 teams says the Renault boss. 

• Abiteboul sees more potential to unlock at Renault

"It will have to grow in a controlled manner, because frankly I don’t have the appetite for becoming a 800-900 head unit," he said. "I don’t think it is sensible.

"I expect at some point this sport will do something so it makes little sense for us to grow at such a level."

"It is not a matter of financial resources, it is also a matter of long-term strategy - because I think the most sensible point for the team is in the region of 650.

"Assumptions for next year are already almost above 650."

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