Categories: F1 News, Reports and Race ResultsRed Bull Racing

Red Bull target is third place - Marko

Helmut Marko says Red Bull is targeting third place in the constructors' championship this season once Renault updates come through.

Red Bull will run Renault power units tagged as Tag Heuer this season following a breakdown in the relationship between team and engine supplier last season. Renault has already delivered a step forward with its power unit this year and has major upgrades in the pipeline which Marko believes will allow Red Bull to pull clear of the midfield.

“It seems that with the engine development things are going in the right direction,” Marko told the official Formula 1 website. “But, to bridge the gap to the leading engines, that will take some time.

“For the first half of the season I see Mercedes doing one-two finishes as long as they do not screw-up, then I see Ferrari and a tight fight between Williams, Force India, Toro Rosso and Red Bull Racing behind them.

“From midseason onwards our power unit situation should improve - and that makes me believe that P3 should be feasible.”

Renault's power unit was a solid and reliable runner during pre-season testing, with Daniel Ricciardo saying a "big step" is expected in the races following the start of the European 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.