Abiteboul, despite leaving, praising Ricciardo: 'We will certainly miss him'

Daniel Ricciardo is leaving Renault after the conclusion of the 2020 Formula 1 season. While he won't have made many friends at the start of the season with his announced departure to rival McLaren, he more than made up for it with his performance on and off the track.

Ricciardo was part of the remarkable transfer saga leading up to the 2020 Formula 1 season. When Ferrari announced that Carlos Sainz would be the replacement for Sebastian Vettel, Renault had its mouth full when the Australian announced to leave for McLaren. However, Cyril Abiteboul praised his departing star driver.

Ricciardo leaves through the front door

''He has made a positive contribution to the development of this team and the ironic thing is now that with McLaren he will have to race against a much stronger team through his own work. Of course we may be able to do it, but we are also happy for him to be able to race for a big team and we look forward to racing against him," Renault's team manager tells Marca.

When it comes to the development of the team, Abiteboul only mentions the departing driver and not the man who remains: Esteban Ocon. ''I think there is no doubt about the growth of this team and for that we can congratulate Daniel. He has led the team, so the whole group has done an excellent job this season," concludes the Frenchman.