Daniel Ricciardo, Renault, 2020

Ricciardo expects podium finish in second season at Renault

2020 F1 season

Posted on

| Written by

Daniel Ricciardo is targeting a podium finish in his second season with Renault, which he says he expected would be possible when he signed his two-year deal with the team.

He scored a best finish of fourth place in his first full season with the team last year and expects more from 2020.

“I really still believe there’s a podium there with with Renault,” said Ricciardo. “When I signed this initial two-year contract, I saw a podium in that signing, if you know what I mean.

“So that’s really, as far as a position goes, that would be a personal objective for me, something I think is attainable. And as a team, for sure, [to] improve and take the fight to obviously the front guys is our target – but take the fight back from that midfield and take that fourth place.”

The team has invested in its resources since Renault returned to F1 as a full manufacturer four years ago, and Ricciardo believes they are now almost on a par with the top teams.

“When I got to Renault I looked at the facilities and the facilities are great,” he said. “It’s not like we’re lacking much at all in terms of that compared to the big teams.

“So that’s where teamwork comes in. It’s about using each member of the team in the most efficient way, it’s not about having the smartest guy in all of F1 in your team, it’s not about one individual, it’s about everyone coming together.

“I saw last year as the year went on, belief grew in the team, I think. But that also needs to be reinstated. As a person you forget things over time, naturally, it’s like a human instinct. So as far as like a team spirit and team morale, you know, you have to keep reiterating and reinserting this into into the team and the atmosphere. So it’s something I’m working on as well.”

Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and go ad-free

2020 F1 season

Browse all 2020 F1 season articles

Author information

Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

Got a potential story, tip or enquiry? Find out more about RaceFans and contact us here.

29 comments on “Ricciardo expects podium finish in second season at Renault”

  1. According to Abiteboul he is putting to much pressure on the team.
    Expecting a podium will increase the pressure even more
    Ricci deserves a podium, but with Renault that`s unlikely to happen.
    But another Baku/stroll situation can happen I guess.

    1. That could explain at least partially why Renauld have not done as well as expected. If Abiteboul is not pushing for the win that attitude permeates throughout the team, it becomes a self fulfilling prophecy.

      1. @johnrkh – indeed. First it was Cyril complaining about RBR’s pressure, then it’s Daniel. Stay home if you can’t handle the pressure, Renault. Williams are in a worse situation, and they’re showing way more spirit.

        1. Yep, I just don’t get the feeling from Renault that they want to win. The most dramatic thing they’ve done is hire a race winner, then proceeded to complain that he’s adding too much pressure…

    2. Ricciardo “deserves” the same amount of podiums as lance stroll does…. ZERO!

      People “deserve” to win dancing with the stars, but this is racing. If your slow, YOU ARE SLOW!

      I swear you guys are hypnotized by the smile… keep the popularity contests to reality tv…

      I like the guy too… watching him blowup two years ago while walking home down the pit lane was painful…. but come on peeps, this is racing not bad television.

  2. Cristiano Ferreira
    12th February 2020, 19:43

    To be fair the most sensible option that Daniel has at the momment is to stay at Renault until the end of 2021 just to see how things play out with the reg changes. It is… unless Seb or Hamilton decides to retire or Merc removes Bottas from the second seat (and ignoring Russell along the way, similar to Ocon and Wehrlein), and yet i don’t know if Ricciardo still wants to play second fiddle for any of the remaining drivers, be it Hamilton or Leclerc.

    I think Red Bull could be an option for return also, but for that i think a Verstappen move to either Ferrari or Merc is needed.

    1. McLaren-Mercedes may be a good option too.

      1. Cristiano Ferreira
        12th February 2020, 20:07

        Yeah its a good option too but i don’t think McLaren has any real chances of becoming WCCs or WDCs being a customer team of Mercedes. Not that Renault is doing any better being a Works team, but it has more chances to improve than McLaren in the long term, i think.

        1. Haven’t McLaren always been a customer team? It did not stop them winning both WCCs or WDCs in the past.

          1. @Alvaro – yes, McLaren have won WDC and WCC as a customer team, but at that time the engine manufacturer wasn’t fielding its own team. McLaren were the default works team. This wouldn’t be the case if Mercedes are still participating (and all the signs are that they will).

          2. Cristiano Ferreira
            13th February 2020, 2:50

            Alvaro, McLaren was Mercedes works team in the past in the same vein that Red Bull is now the works team of the Honda outfit.

            @avroanson was spot on with his reply to you. That was what i meant.

  3. Has Marcin Budkowski informed Ricciardo that the focus will very soon be the 2021 car?

    1. @phylyp – I thought exactly the same – if he’s going to get that podium it will probably need to be early in the season while they are still bringing upgrades!

  4. Sorry Dan, but podium finish it’s highly unlikely if not next to impossible with Renault…
    But rumour has it at least money should be OK, so stay cool, and do not (I repeat: DO NOT!) put any more pressure on your team – reportedly they already struggle facing a fact how bad their cars did recently, so be nice, polite and gentle, lie to them if necessary – like Mr.Abiteboul always does, doesn’t he…?
    Cheers!

  5. Ricciardo had a hissy fit and left RB in a huff. He’s going to have many years to regret his move to Renault. I can’t see another top team taking him on, with so many good young drivers on their way up. Drivers who will be cheaper than him to employ.

    1. Nope. None of this is true.

      1. Why leave a winning team for the serial losers at Renault ? BTW, Ricciardo will in for a shock when he signs a new contract, he won’t be collecting half of what he does now.

        1. Serial losers with 11 WDC’s & 12 WCC’s, sure. I don’t think he would care if it was a car capable of winning.

          1. Those are not Renault’s championships. They won 2 of each, the last 14 years ago.

        2. @Jon Bee where does all of that nastiness come from? You talk as if Ricciardo has had affairs with all of the women in your life and they all said he’s better than you.
          ROFL

  6. I think the world of Daniel’s talent but I don’t see Renault winding up on the podium this year, unless it’s by way of luck in some insane race like the German GP was this past season. Their car last year wasn’t great, and they’ve essentially said their 2020 car is just a heavily modified 2019 car. Whether or not those modifications are enough to make a significant improvement, who knows, but with other teams bringing out all-new cars for 2020 I think they’ll be facing just as much of an uphill battle this year, if not more.

    I expect McLaren to be just as strong as last year, if not stronger. I expect Racing Point to be stronger than last year, since they had a full year to develop without financial interruptions. The midfield was very competitive last year and I think that will be the case again, and the top three teams will be stronger than ever.

    Daniel’s best bet is to get the most out of the car this year, smile, and sign with Ferrari in place of Vettel. (A guy can dream, right?)

  7. Not seeing a podium in an evolved version of last year’s mediocre car, especially when they’re aiming to switch to 2021 as early as possible.

    But then, I don’t imagine Daniil Kvyat or Carlos Sainz saw a podium last year either, so one never knows.

  8. There’s no way Renault will get a podium finish, unless it is a crazy race.

    2 Mercedes, 2 Ferraris and 2 RedBulls. Plus McLaren and AlphaTauri to deal with in the midfield.

    Is Ricciardo talking about Monaco?

  9. Gasly, Kvyat and Sainz all scored podiums last year. I don’t see any reason why Ricciardo couldn’t score a podium in similar circumstances to those occasions last year so it’s not impossible, but does seem improbable.

    It will all come down to being in the right place at the right time, which is something Ricciardo did make a bit of a habit of in the past with Red Bull. His former team mate never did, so we’ll see.

    1. Because they are all in for 2021. And they will move all of their resources to the 2021 car as soon as possible… So 2020 will be sacrificed. Last season Toro Rosso nearly got past Renault in the standings. But this season they are likely to beat Renault.

      1. Ricciardo has a history of making good on opportunities and he has that most coveted talent, that of being a race “Winner”. How many current drivers can claim that.? I could be wrong, but 7 looks about right.
        The Hulk should have had it all over Ricciardo last year, but didn’t. Ricciardo has shown an ability to squeeze that last position out of a race that others can’t. That is what Renault bought and paid for. Someone who can be a winner.
        As for team spirit, it would definitely seem that the Renault group needs a kick in the motivator.
        Compared to Williams and their fighting spirit, @phylyp, a question would be, How may Pit-Stop Times has Renault won?
        Talk about a Team-Building Ego-Boost. Williams didn’t have a lock on it, but they were consistently among the best. Why … because they WANTED IT.! Full credit to them.
        Yes it would be great to see Williams and Ricciardo both winning in their categories.

  10. The headline is a little misleading. His expectation when joining Renault was that he’d be able to get a podium or several this year.

    That was what he expected when he signed up, not his current expectation. He said he’s hoping to get one but I suspect he knows that there is probably very little chance, especially given that Renault aren’t planning much for this years car.

    I imagine he might be a little wary about their promises for 2021 given the lack of delivery from the team since he signed. Going to be a tough call.

  11. Well, you just got to keep yourself in a position where you could benefit the most out of the rest position-wise if an opportunity arises through something happening to the front-runners like Gasly in Brazil.

Comments are closed.