Categories: F1 News, Reports and Race ResultsRed Bull Racing

Ricciardo warns Renault update worth 0.1s

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Daniel Ricciardo says Renault's updated power unit is only expected to deliver an extra 0.1s of lap time.

Renault will introduce its new specification of engine for the first time at this weekend's Brazilian Grand Prix after Red Bull opted not to run it in either the United States or Mexico. Asked if he is looking forward to trying the updated Renault power unit, Ricciardo replied: "A little bit.

"For sure I am curious. I am not getting my hopes up. Renault said it is not going to give me a whole lot of lap time. Between a tenth and 2. So if they say between one and two tenths, it is probably more like a tenth.

"But I’m curious to know more the drivability and if there is something from it, whether it picks up the throttle cleaner. If there is something here which can be positive, and then maybe that helps tyre wear or things during the race. This is something I am more interested in."

However, Ricciardo says any encouraging signs from the new power unit could influence Red Bull's thinking over its 2016 plans.

"For all of us, as Red Bull … we are still undecided what we are going to do next year, so if maybe we do see something positive from this weekend, and something we could take forward to next year, then it could give us an option as well, and some clarity on where we want to go.

"As well in my and Danny’s position, I am the one taking the engine for now, so my position, two races left, not fighting for a whole lot, it is not a circuit we expect to be on the podium, so in a way there is nothing to lose in trying it. It might give us some clarity or answers."

Click here for Eric Silbermann's Brazilian grumpy preview

Click here for Chris Medland's Brazilian Grand Prix preview

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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.