Remi Taffin, the Engine Technical Director of the Renault Sport F1 team, feels the Hungaroring will give the team a good opportunity to maximise what strengths they have after a disappointing 2016 campaign to date.
Around a circuit that is not dependent on engine power, Taffin believes the team that has only one top ten finish in the opening ten races of the season could be one to get a decent result, especially with the developments the team introduced during the in-season test at Silverstone.
“We know that slower tracks with lots of tight corners aren’t where our strengths lie,” said Taffin. “In general the car didn’t perform well over the kerbs and in the slower turns, but with the extensive work we achieved at Silverstone, Budapest should benefit from new parts and a better understanding of the car.
“On top of that, Budapest also has short straights between the corners so this could turn into our direction. We hence look forward to Budapest to maximise what we have got.”
Taffin insists it is good motivation for the factory team to see the same power unit package working so well in the hands of Red Bull Racing, who have taken a number of podium finishes in 2016 and have in recent races been the closest challengers to the dominant Mercedes AMG PETRONAS outfit.
“It’s obviously encouraging to see that the power unit is now capable of fighting on track at the front and going for pole positions,” said Taffin.
“It shows the work we have done has paid off but we know we still need to increase the power output and this is where our focus lies as we know how to achieve that.”
