F1 News
Renault have dig at critics as they hail performance of "openly criticized" engine
- Nicolás Quarles van Ufford
After Renault's best result since returning to F1 as a constructor in 2016, the team's team principal Cyril Abiteboul praised their engine's progress in recent months as Daniel Ricciardo and Nico Hülkenberg finished fourth and fifth respectively.
Renault's performance had been good all weekend long, as both cars comfortably reached Q3 on Saturday and drove with excellent pace during the length of the Grand Prix.
With Max Verstappen starting at the back and with Sebastian Vettel spinning and losing his front wing early-on in the race, the French works team suddenly found themselves in fourth and fifth, with their fortunes getting even better when McLaren driver Carlos Sainz retired.
The race went without drama and the team took their biggest points haul in the hybrid era, leaving Abiteboul very happy post-race.
“Today’s result is not only the best combined result for the team since its re-entry to Formula 1 but also a demonstration after Montréal and Spa the clear progress of the team and in particular on the power unit side that has been so openly criticised in the past," Abiteboul said after the dust had settled in Monza.
"It is a demonstration that everything is so fluid with a competitive package. It is also an invitation to repeat these types of emotions, when our season has been far from a smooth ride so far.
"Our drivers have shown what they can do with a competitive car. They have been remarkable all the way through including in tricky situations. This result is good for the team as we also know there are very challenging circuits to come this season where we will be less competitive. But let’s take this for now.”
With this points-haul, Renault are now just 18 points behind midfield leaders McLaren in the constructors' championship as they have 65 points compared to McLaren's 83.