Nico Hulkenberg says Carlos Sainz's arrival at Renault has already had a beneficial impact on the French outfit, with more to come.
Sainz switched from Toro Rosso to Renault after the Japanese Grand Prix and rewarded himself and his new team with a run in to the points in Austin.
Hulkenberg believes the Spaniard is a welcome addition and will offer a valuable contribution to help the team move up the ranks.
"It will have a dramatic impact on my Spanish!" the German driver joked in an interview with Formula 1's official website.
"The Spanish lessons are welcome and we are moving in the right direction. On top of that he is a young, aspiring and quick driver.
"He is fast and has straightaway had a positive impact on the team. We are pushing each other, so this is all very positive for the team – and its future.
"It’s cool working with him and so far we have a good relationship."
Renault is locked in a tight mid-field battle for sixth in the Constructors' standings, surrounded by Toro Rosso in front and Haas just one point behind.
But Hulkenberg will be focused on achieving the best possible result in the last two races of the season, with the championship working itself out thereafter.
"For the moment we need to forget a bit about the constructors’ championship and take it race weekend by race weekend," he says.
"At these two remaining race weekends we have to maximise what we have and also, very importantly, see the chequered flag – simply to finish the race and get results and data, data, data!
"But sure, Mexico has taken away a very good chance of finishing in P5. That’s even more disappointing given both our qualifying results there.
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