Categories: F1 News, Reports and Race ResultsRenault

Team takeover an option for Renault

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Cyril Abiteboul says Renault is looking at taking over an F1 team in the future but no decisions have been made yet.

The power unit manufacturer is only supplying two teams this year as it focuses on Red Bull and Toro Rosso in order to try to close the gap to Mercedes. However, Renault Sport F1 managing director Abiteboul says a return to team ownership is being considered as the company looks to increase its presence in motorsport.

“We are happy to be a power unit supplier,” Abiteoul told RMC. “Our priority is to help Red Bull become world champions again. They’re the only team that can reclaim the title in the near future.

“Renault is going to become more and more aggressive in the field of sportscars. This is a segment where we are quite active and recognised, but maybe not significant enough just yet. By developing and strengthening our position in the world on this market, we’ll make our involvement in motor racing and Formula One more pertinent.

“Taking over an existing team is not out of the question, but absolutely nothing has been decided either. It must fit within a broader, very long-term plan that has to be paired with a global industrial strategy.

“F1 is not the only medium on Earth through which our cars can be more relevant. We must think about a global sport strategy that suits Renault best. We’ll keep an eye on everything, including the evolution of the sport and its funding.”

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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.