Red Bull can be 'a big challenger' to Mercedes - Prost

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Alain Prost says Red Bull has the potential to be "a big challenger for Mercedes" in 2016, and insists Renault is happy despite now having its own team.

Renault took over Lotus at the end of 2015 amid a breakdown in the relationship with Red Bull, but while returning as a constructor it also extended its supply deal which allows Red Bull to badge the power units as Tag Heuer.

Red Bull won the Spanish Grand Prix and Daniel Ricciardo looked set to win from pole position in Monaco but for a pit stop error, with a power unit upgrade helping close the gap to Mercedes. Renault ambassador Prost says the recent progress could see Red Bull challenge the defending champions for the rest of the year.

"They could be a challenger, maybe a big challenger, for Mercedes, definitely," Prost said when asked about Red Bull's chances this season. "But I don't think Renault can do much more for the engine, but for sure there will be some more improvement.

"But [Renault] are very happy ... unless [the constructor team] are going to become competitive - which is not today - they are very happy to see the engine winning and Red Bull to be a contender. I'm not jealous at all, for sure!"

And Prost says Red Bull's success can act as motivation for Renault's constructor team as well as validation of the power unit.

"I think it's a very positive thing, in this situation. It's a constructor team, so you have an engine and chassis together now, so it can be a positive fight or competition. At least you know the engine is working well and it can be very good for the people making the engine, very good for the image, very good for Red Bull.

"It means you can concentrate, and it gives a nice motivation, a nice vision for the future. It is almost like 'this part is working, so we can do even better'."

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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.