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Abiteboul: F1 "Cannot Go On Like This"

09:49, 14 Mar 2018

byNicolás Quarles van Ufford

Renault-boss Cyrit Abiteboul has made some heart-felt comments about the state of F1, saying that it "cannot go on like this", referencing to the fact that we "already know the name of the champion before the season starts."

He told this to the Italian La Gazetta dello Sport ahead of the Australian Grand Prix in two weeks time.

“That is not healthy and serves no one," he continued. "So we need to work closely with Liberty Media but also with Ferrari, Mercedes, McLaren, and so forth to make changes.”

“We must do so, however, without damaging the DNA of Formula One. Thepublic perception has changed and the recipe of yesterday no longer works in a world that constantly changes. Now the focus must be on sport, not technology.”

Besides being a team, Renault also provides power for three teams (including themselves); Red Bull Racing and McLaren. While the Renault-team themselves aren't anywhere near the top, Red Bull and McLaren have shown good pace in pre-season testing, even though the reliability was still an issue for the latter team.

Both Carlos Sainz (Renault) and Fernando Alonso (McLaren) saw their engines needing replacement on the final day of testing, which Abiteboul explained.

“We are starting with a conservative approach. The focus is on reliability, which is important because we have a completely different car with a new gearbox, suspension and so on. A huge jump.”

“Last year, we improved from ninth place to sixth, so we need to continue. We are on course for our goals in terms of reliability and performance, but that’s just a starting point.”

Red Bull are considered the best performing Renault-customer, but the team has flirted with the idea of moving away from their French engine partners. Red Bull's junior team Toro Rosso have made the switch to Honda, something Red Bull will keep a close eye on in terms of performance.

Whether or not Red Bull will leave Renault at the end of their current deal that runs until the end of 2019, Abiteboul didn't know.

“It’s too early to say that, but let me just underline one thing – there wasn't a single season where we didn't have intensive discussions with them, and yet we are still together 12 years later.”

What a love story.

“I am not saying that we will be in 2019 as well, but we want clarity on that cooperation as soon as possible.”