{"id":4963,"date":"2018-04-18T18:50:36","date_gmt":"2018-04-18T17:50:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/f1vault.co.uk\/?p=4963"},"modified":"2018-04-18T18:50:36","modified_gmt":"2018-04-18T17:50:36","slug":"f1-today-18042018","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/f1-today-18042018\/","title":{"rendered":"F1 Today – 18\/04\/2018"},"content":{"rendered":"

Renault believe upgrades worth more in lap time<\/strong><\/p>\n

Renault believes that planned upgrades to its power units this season will be worth more in lap time than they are currently giving away to Mercedes and Ferrari.<\/p>\n

Since the introduction of the V6 hybrid power units in 2014, Renault has been third in the power stakes. But since last weekends race in China has opened up more power after validating its reliability, which is believed to be worth \u201ca bit more than a tenth\u201d in qualifying and \u201cmore than half a second\u201d in race trim.<\/p>\n

Renaults F1 managing director, Cyril Abiteboul told Motorsport.com \u201cWe are talking about a substantial amount of in-season development,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is more than the gap we have now, in my opinion, from the top teams, certainly in the race at least. But obviously top teams, top engine suppliers, they are not going to stop there.\u201d However, he wouldn\u2019t reveal what the manufacturer would bring performance upgrades.<\/p>\n

Abiteboul did confirm that more engine power stuff was coming for Barcelona and that any other upgrades would not come from hardware upgrades. Renault fitted new MGU-H\u2019s to both Nico Hulkenberg and Carlos Sainz Jr ahead of the Chinese GP weekend but this was not in the pursuit of performance.<\/p>\n

However he says that the execution of the plan would not be successful if they are not able to find what caused Daniel Ricciardo\u2019s spectacular engine failure in practice in China.<\/p>\n

He said Renault already had \u201can idea\u201d of the cause during the weekend but remained tight-lipped, only mentioning that\u00a0McLaren suffered \u201ca similar failure\u201d in testing.<\/p>\n

Ricciardo\u2019s turbo problem followed an energy store failure on his car on the second lap of the Bahrain Grand Prix the week before.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ricciardo wants two-year deal<\/strong><\/p>\n

Daniel Ricciardo says that he only wants a two-year contract to remain in Formula One because of the uncertainty over the future of the sport.<\/p>\n

The twenty eight year old is one of the key movers in the driver market as he is out of contract with Red Bull at the end of 2020, because of the uncertainty around the next engine regulations. Speaking to The Times, the Australian said \u201cI don\u2019t want to sign anything too long because I don\u2019t know where the sport\u2019s going.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like life is happening pretty fast. Each year something might change so I don\u2019t want to tie myself down for four more years and then I\u2019m like, \u2018I don\u2019t want to do this anymore\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cIdeally I\u2019d sign a two-year contract. I think two years I can definitely be comfortable with and then see it from there,\u201d he added. \u201cThat third year will be the rule change so I will probably wait and see what happens then.\u201d<\/p>\n

The current engine regulations expire at the end of 2020, as well as the commercial agreement known as the Concorde Agreement. Red Bull are also debating whether to move to Honda for 2019, following the progress made by the manufacturer.<\/p>\n

Mercedes are yet to announce whether they are retaining Lewis Hamilton, who has also \u00a0said he wants to see what the future holds before committing.<\/p>\n

While Ferrari\u2019s Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull\u2019s Max Verstappen have long-term deals, there is uncertainty about the futures of Kimi Raikkonen at Ferrari and Valtteri Bottas at Mercedes.<\/p>\n

Ricciardo would be a strong replacement for either but the Australian told the newspaper that neither team had been in touch so far.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Alonso doesn\u2019t care about former teams success <\/strong><\/p>\n

Fernando Alonso says he \u201cdoesn\u2019t care too much\u201d about the performances and results achieved by his former teams and teammates.<\/p>\n

The Spaniard\u2019s comments came following questions about the form of former McLaren engine supplier Honda, who appear to have made a step forward in reliability and performance. McLaren is currently third in the constructors, with Honda getting their best result since returning to the sport in Bahrain.<\/p>\n

When asked about Toro Rosso, Alonso told the media Bahrain \u201cwas a very nice weekend for them,” Alonso told media when asked about Toro Rosso at the Chinese Grand Prix.<\/p>\n

“To be honest, after 18 years in Formula 1, to answer after one good qualifying or one good result from any team makes no sense.\u201d The Spaniard said that queries about Toro Rosso-Honda reminded him of the aftermath of his split with\u00a0Ferrari\u00a0back in 2015.<\/p>\n

While the\u00a0McLaren\u00a0team Alonso switched to is yet to score a podium since his arrival, the Scuderia has won 10 races in the meantime, and mounted a credible title challenge last year.<\/p>\n

Speaking about Ferrari, he said \u201cAfter I left Ferrari, every win, every podium they were achieving, you asked me about if I regretted when I left Ferrari.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter four years Mercedes keep winning and they have four championships and now you are not asking me about Ferrari, you’ve changed for Toro Rosso. Or Renault, in 2005 and 2006 I won two championships with them and now they are competitive again.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

FIA working on pit stop errors<\/strong><\/p>\n

The FIA and teams are working on ways of making pit stops safer following a number of unsafe releases in the opening three races.<\/p>\n

Both Haas\u2019s\u00a0retired from the Australian Grand Prix with cross-threaded wheelnuts before a Ferrari mechanic suffered a broken leg when Kimi Raikkonen was released from a pit stop too early in Bahrain.<\/p>\n

There have also been a number of unsafe releases during practice sessions since the start of the year, as well as an issue that saw a wheel come off Fernando Alonso’s McLaren in testing. FIA race director Charlie Whiting told ESPN \u201cI think we can introduce a few things to decrease the likelihood of mistakes.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI think we have learned something, but I think we need to, again, analyse these things to ensure what we do, we do it precisely and make sure everyone is able to follow it.\u201d He added that they need to decide what can and can\u2019t be automated, and that was currently being discussed.<\/p>\n

Asked if pit stop systems could be standardised across all teams to improve safety, Whiting added: “I don’t think there’s any need to standardise it. I think what we need to do is make sure the operator can’t press the button before they’re done, because effectively they could just go in there with a thumb on it and just do it and come off.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Strategy group agrees to fuel increases<\/strong><\/p>\n

The F1 Strategy Group and Commission have agreed to increase the fuel allowance from 105kg to 110kg for 2019, to help drivers to \u2018use the engine at full power at all times’.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the sport\u2019s governing body the FIA has also set a deadline of May to finalise the next set of power unit regulations, as reported last week. The change in fuel allowance when approved by the World Motor Sport Council, will be welcomed by the teams.<\/p>\n

They have faced increased fuel consumption due to the higher downforce levels and faster lap times generated by last year\u2019s aero changes, and which have put an extra emphasis on fuel saving in races \u2013 something that is not popular with fans.<\/p>\n

Also from next season, the governing body will separate the weight of driver and cars and introduce biometric gloves for safety reasons.<\/p>\n

As previously reported, there was\u00a0further debate today on aerodynamic changes for 2019\u00a0to facilitate overtaking. The FIA stressed that it wants a decision by the end of this month, which is the official deadline for 2019 rules changes.<\/p>\n

The FIA has also announced plans to drop the hybrid element of the power unit from 2021. Though the hybrid has been dropped Liberty hasn\u2019t compromised on its stance about the energy recovery system, other elements of the 2021 package remain\u00a0the subject of debate.<\/p>\n

Sources have indicated that the FIA and Liberty have different views on some aspects of the final\u00a0concept.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

My future could be with Renault \u2013 Sainz<\/strong><\/p>\n

Carlos Sainz believes that his future could be with Renault despite still being under contract with Red Bull. After becoming frustrated with Toro Rosso, Red Bull released him on loan to the French manufacturer but retain an option on the Spaniard for 2019.<\/p>\n

While Red Bull has uncertainty over Daniel Ricciardo\u2019s future, that put Sainz\u2019s future in the balance as he is unable to commit to Renault because Red Bull retains the option. Speaking to Sky Sports, he said \u201cDefinitely the future could be with Renault and I’m ready for it if it comes.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI’m loving it, especially because the team is just moving forward. Investment is coming, all the mechanics and engineers just feel this vibe.\u201d On paper, the pairing between Sainz and Nico Hulkenberg the most equal on the grid.<\/p>\n

The team are currently fifth in the constructors, after scoring double point finishes in two of the three races after Sainz just missed out on a top ten finish in Bahrain. Advisor and four times champion, Alain Prost added \u201cWe knew that it was a risk [taking Sainz]. But it’s better to take this kind of risk.\u201d<\/p>\n

Prost added \u201cIt’s important for the team to make a progression. It was a decision that was good for the team and good for Nico because you can see that it made his level even higher now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Renault believes that planned upgrades to its power units this season will be worth more in lap time than they are currently giving away to Mercedes and Ferrari.<\/p>\n

Since the introduction of the V6 hybrid power units in 2014, Renault has been third in the power stakes. But since last weekends race in China has opened up more power after validating its reliability, which is believed to be worth \u201ca bit more than a tenth\u201d in qualifying and \u201cmore than half a second\u201d in race trim.<\/p>\n

Renaults F1 managing director, Cyril Abiteboul told Motorsport.com \u201cWe are talking about a substantial amount of in-season development,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is more than the gap we have now, in my opinion, from the top teams, certainly in the race at least. But obviously top teams, top engine suppliers, they are not going to stop there.\u201d However, he wouldn\u2019t reveal what the manufacturer would bring performance upgrades.<\/p>\n

Abiteboul did confirm that more engine power stuff was coming for Barcelona and that any other upgrades would not come from hardware upgrades. Renault fitted new MGU-H\u2019s to both Nico Hulkenberg and Carlos Sainz Jr ahead of the Chinese GP weekend but this was not in the pursuit of performance.<\/p>\n

However, he says that the execution of the plan would not be successful if they are not able to find what caused Daniel Ricciardo\u2019s spectacular engine failure in practice in China.<\/p>\n

He said Renault already had \u201can idea\u201d of the cause during the weekend but remained tight-lipped, only mentioning that\u00a0McLaren suffered \u201ca similar failure\u201d in testing.<\/p>\n

Ricciardo\u2019s turbo problem followed an energy store failure on his car on the second lap of the Bahrain Grand Prix the week before.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Renault believe upgrades worth more in lap time Renault believes that planned upgrades to its power units this season will be worth more in lap time than they are currently giving away to Mercedes and Ferrari. Since the introduction of the V6 hybrid power units in 2014, Renault has been third in the power stakes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[44,93,369,393,478,493,573,616,621,667,675,707,712,754,799,1287,1289,1422,1556,1637,1639,1642,1649,1656,1921,2058,2088],"class_list":["post-4963","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news-analysis","tag-44","tag-alain-prost","tag-carlos-sainz-jr","tag-charlie-whiting","tag-cyril-abiteboul","tag-daniel-ricciardo","tag-driver-market","tag-engine-devlopment","tag-engine-regulations","tag-f1-commission","tag-f1-today","tag-fernando-alonso","tag-fia","tag-formula-one","tag-future-of-f1","tag-mclaren","tag-mclaren-honda","tag-nico-hulkenberg","tag-pit-stops","tag-red-bull","tag-red-bull-tag-heuer","tag-red-bull-racing","tag-regulation-changes","tag-renault","tag-strategy-group","tag-tyre-failures","tag-upgrades"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4963","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4963"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4963\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4963"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4963"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4963"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}