Renault intends to take full advantage of the opportunity offered by the new regulations which will be introduced for the 2021 F1 season.
The manufacturer returned to Formula 1 four years ago when it took over the former Lotus team. Since then it has invested in upgrading their infrastructure and hiring new staff.The team sees 2021, when the technical regulations will be overhauled and a budget cap introduced, as a major opportunity. However like its rivals it will face the challenge of developing its 2020 car while also preparing for next season.
“Finding the balance between the 2020 and 2021 car projects will be a huge challenge, of a scale that is probably unprecedented in Formula 1,” said the team’s executive director Marcin Budkowski. “You always try to start new cars as early as possible but it’s even more valuable when you have a big change in regulations, and the 2021 regulations are nothing short of a revolution.
“Of course, our ambition is to have a good 2020 season, but we are aiming to transition to 2021 as early as possible as we expect the slope of development for the new car to be very steep.”
The team has hired former McLaren engineer Pat Fry as its new technical director for chassis. Budkowski said Fry’s arrival will be especially beneficial for their 2021 plans.
“Pat joins us with a wealth of experience in engineering from a number of top teams. His background is wide-ranging, from trackside race engineering to overseeing car designs and managing technical teams. From a personality point of view, he also has a lot of drive and a very strong ability to focus on the things that really mater to make a car go quicker.
“His expertise will be of strategic use in the development of the 2021 car as well as for the RS20. The latter’s principal characteristics were already determined a few months ago and it is more of an evolution of the RS19. As such, its potential progress is limited, but it is an informed decision based on the resources we have at our disposal and our mid-term ambitions.”
Renault ‘season opener’ event
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2020 F1 season
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TFLB (@tflb)
12th February 2020, 16:57
I’d be surprised if they make it to 2021 in the current ownership if results continue their trend from last year, to be honest.
Jere (@jerejj)
12th February 2020, 17:14
I prefer last season’s color scheme design on the official team clothing (T-shirts, polos, softshells, etc.) over the new one featuring a mix of white, yellow, and black. BTW, the place where this event took place, I happened to go there last June when I visited Paris. I randomly saw the big Renault-text on the glass wall, so I went to see what’s in there. I initially assumed it’d be only road car stuff, but the positive surprise was that there’s also stuff relating to the F1 team.
erikje
12th February 2020, 19:06
If only the color choice was there only problem.
nickthegreek (@nickthegreek)
13th February 2020, 8:18
hahaha
Matt (@hollidog)
13th February 2020, 11:42
Is it the showroom on the Champs Elysees?
ajay
12th February 2020, 19:23
so the leadership gets another year of excuses! we are not competitive this year because we will be next year!
Cristiano Ferreira
12th February 2020, 19:51
The only ones who are allowed to waste large amounts of money in development for the current 2020 cars are the top 3 teams. From McLaren and below i think it is smarter to just run the 2020 cars from Melbourne until the end of the season with VERY MINOR upgrades.
Seriously its kinda of silly to waste any money in the 2020 cars when you dont have anything to gain from it. For sure some WCCs positions is good (and valuable) but it could ramper the development for 2021 that is the season where all the fun begins with.
DB-C90 (@dbradock)
12th February 2020, 22:10
I’m sure that’s what Renault are hoping for – not really convinced they’ll get their wish though and can see them falling further behind if all they’ve done is give last years dog a quick paint job.
No doubt they’ll have made some changes but I thought last year’s car was limited in just how much more performance they could get out of it without some major changes.
nickthegreek (@nickthegreek)
13th February 2020, 8:19
I don’t really agree, 2020 is a full season with everything to fight for.
I think of it like this, if eg. Renault wins another Championship this year, will it matter any less than if they win it next year?
Esploratore (@esploratore)
14th February 2020, 1:01
The problem with that is renault has absolutely 0% chance to close the gap and win the 2020 title, that chance goes up to 1% if they get the regulations right.