2019 Report – Renault: Disillusionment in the French Camp
The end of the year is approaching, and it's time to analyze the performance of the teams in 2019. Motors Inside offers you a look back at the season of the Renault team, which, despite the arrival of top driver Daniel Ricciardo, experienced a year of stagnation or even regression.
If we are to believe the roadmap of the French team at the dawn of its return in 2016, 2019 was supposed to mean a slew of podiums or even potential victories before fighting for the championship around 2020/2021.
How distant those times seem in light of the rather mediocre performances by the Yellows this season.
Indeed, Renault’s trajectory (although less clear-cut than announced) was on the right track with the 4th place in the constructors’ championship in 2018, signifying the best of the “others.” The progress was also notable for the drivers, with Nico Hülkenberg securing 7th place in the championship.
Before the start of the season, Abiteboul set the objective to close in on the top 3 – Mercedes, Ferrari, Red Bull – and to secure some podiums when the opportunity arose. It turned out to be quite the opposite.
Each time the opportunity to secure a podium arose (Germany, Brazil), the yellow and black cars were nowhere, and it was the small Toro Rosso team and McLaren through Sainz who reaped the rewards of the race events.
Renault has therefore lost the 4th place in the constructors’ championship to McLaren… their own engine customer! While this aspect was previously the target of criticism (notably by Red Bull at the time), it is one of the only positive points of the season for the brand with the diamond.
A much better engine but a poor chassis
The engine has been rather reliable and has significantly improved to the point that the team achieved its best performances on “engine” type circuits like Montreal or Monza.
This year, the real problem was the chassis, whereas the direct competitor, McLaren, performed quite well. The team did not hesitate to thank Nick Chester, who had been present for many years and was considered one of those responsible.
Renault also wanted to “refresh” its driver lineup by opting for Esteban Ocon to replace Nico Hülkenberg. The German pays for his lack of opportunism on the track as well as his probable weariness in his performances, which led the management to turn to the ambitious young driver that is Esteban Ocon.
In addition to his already proven performances over his two seasons in F1, Ocon is a young French driver, which is good for the brand’s image, and the partnership with Daniel Ricciardo already promises a lot.
Next season, drawing from this bad experience, Abiteboul and his team are much more cautious and believe that 2021 better represents the hope of returning to the forefront. Hopefully, they won’t already sacrifice the year 2020!
