Team principal for Renault DP World F1 Team, Cyril Abiteboul, has said there were “lots of emotions” following the Styrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring, which was a somewhat bittersweet weekend for the team.
The team suffered yet another retirement, this time in the form of Esteban Ocon, with the same issues with the cooling system that plagued Daniel Ricciardo at the same circuit last weekend.
“Lots of emotions after a weekend like this one. We had good emotions after qualifying yesterday with both cars reaching Qualifying 3 and Esteban who showed a very strong pace in extreme conditions, demonstrating his outstanding driving skills in his second qualifying with us,” said Abiteboul.
“Today, the emotions were much more painful after another retirement for one of our cars caused by exactly the same issue as last weekend.
“We had put lots of effort to return, examine the parts in Enstone, and send it back to the track, but clearly there is something that we missed. This poor level of reliability is, obviously, not acceptable in a field that is so tight.”
Abiteboul said that the race also showed which elements of the car needed to be improved.
“The race also showed that we need a bit more pace against our direct competitors. Daniel had a good race and he did well to defend for so long.
“Overall, the prevailing feeling is one of disappointment, however, we should not deter from the fact we’ve improved massively at this track compared to previous years. The car has made huge steps forwards but so have the other teams. Now it’s gloves off for the rest of the season.”
