Renault are expecting a tough race at this weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix. Despite making progress with their car after a disappointing beginning to the season, Pat Symonds remains cautious about the future.
“The road back to our normal level of competitiveness will be a long one,” Symonds explained. “We are not expecting leaps forward in competitiveness this weekend.”
Fernando Alonso won for Renault at the Spanish circuit last season, however he has since defected to McLaren. The champions are currently lying in fourth place so far with just nine points from three races. Current driver Fisichella has already written off Renault winning a third back-to-back constructor’s championship, and Kovalainen does not look like a winning driver quite yet.
However, Symonds has high praise for his Italian driver. “Giancarlo has been very impressive so far this season,” he said. “A lot of our esteem for him is rooted in the way he handled our 2001 season when he put huge effort into making the most of a difficult car.
“We are seeing something similar this year. The R27 is a hard car to drive consistently but in spite of this, he has driven very consistent races. He has taken the car to the limit of what it is currently capable of and contributed in every way he can to helping resolve our current problems. We couldn’t ask any more of him.”
