- 24 Feb 16, 13:59#439420
After the agony of defeat, success will be sweet!
Nate Saunders wrote:">The biggest issue facing each F1 team in 2016
Renault
Be competitive as a manufacturer
Renault faces a big task in its return to the grid. Wounded and humiliated in the last two years, the French manufacturer has been on the back foot since the beginning of the current turbo era. Even last year, a late engine upgrade at the Brazilian Grand Prix was met with criticism from Red Bull and it finished the year a distant third to Mercedes and Ferrari. It is easy to forget Renault powered four of the last six drivers' and constructors' champions. Red Bull's failure to give recognition to its French engine partner became a point of contention when the former world champions then laid the blame for 2014 and 2015's failures squarely at Renault's doorstep. From a PR perspective Renault's return as a manufacturer is a chance to fix the damage done by the breakdown of that relationship and its poor performances in the V6 turbo era, to prove Viry-Chatillon has not forgotten how to make winning engines.
The benefit of being a factory team is the control of everything in-house, everything moving towards a similar goal. The negatives are not being able to deflect blame to a customer team -- failure to eventually deliver a competitive package will be laid squarely (and fairly) at Renault's doorstep. Winning another championship will be a huge challenge, especially with Mercedes enjoying such a strong start, but one Renault must be praised for taking up when walking away from F1 looked like the easier choice at the end of last year. The goal this year must be simple: at the very least stay in front of Honda and claw back the gap to the front. Its first issue will be recovering from last year's deficit and the delay in development which came from its protracted takeover of Lotus.
Renault
Be competitive as a manufacturer
Renault faces a big task in its return to the grid. Wounded and humiliated in the last two years, the French manufacturer has been on the back foot since the beginning of the current turbo era. Even last year, a late engine upgrade at the Brazilian Grand Prix was met with criticism from Red Bull and it finished the year a distant third to Mercedes and Ferrari. It is easy to forget Renault powered four of the last six drivers' and constructors' champions. Red Bull's failure to give recognition to its French engine partner became a point of contention when the former world champions then laid the blame for 2014 and 2015's failures squarely at Renault's doorstep. From a PR perspective Renault's return as a manufacturer is a chance to fix the damage done by the breakdown of that relationship and its poor performances in the V6 turbo era, to prove Viry-Chatillon has not forgotten how to make winning engines.
The benefit of being a factory team is the control of everything in-house, everything moving towards a similar goal. The negatives are not being able to deflect blame to a customer team -- failure to eventually deliver a competitive package will be laid squarely (and fairly) at Renault's doorstep. Winning another championship will be a huge challenge, especially with Mercedes enjoying such a strong start, but one Renault must be praised for taking up when walking away from F1 looked like the easier choice at the end of last year. The goal this year must be simple: at the very least stay in front of Honda and claw back the gap to the front. Its first issue will be recovering from last year's deficit and the delay in development which came from its protracted takeover of Lotus.
After the agony of defeat, success will be sweet!
