Friday – Promising beginnings for Renault!

For this inaugural European Grand Prix on the marina of the Spanish metropolis, the team’s priority, having conducted numerous simulations over the past months, was to complete as many laps as possible to gather as much information and data as possible. Both practice sessions took place under a clear sky and in more than summery temperatures, but the level of grip remained very precarious, which is not surprising for a street circuit.

With 134 laps completed on both R28s, Fernando Alonso and Nelson Piquet both finished their entire program for the day and were able to get accustomed to this new circuit. The assessment of this first day of work in Valencia is therefore positive and encouraging, even though there is still much to do before tackling the qualifications!

Fernando Alonso – 9th and 2nd:

We stuck to our plan which was to run as much as possible and complete or even correct our simulations. The circuit is very interesting and demanding. The final sector is probably my favorite, I think the drivers aren’t used to feeling this kind of sensation in their cockpit! The initial results are encouraging, now we need to keep up our efforts to secure a solid qualification tomorrow and ensure a good level of performance in the race.

Nelson Piquet – 15th and 9th:

« I was able to make the most of these three hours of driving to complete many laps and record interesting data for the rest of my weekend. I really like the track, the layout is very interesting. The grip level was very low, but we were prepared for it, and it’s characteristic of urban circuits. I will now work with my engineers to optimize the setup of my car and hope to have good practice sessions again tomorrow to approach the qualifications as sharp as possible.

Pat Symonds – Executive Director of Engineering

« It was interesting today to discover and adapt to this new circuit. During our three hours of testing, we were able to complete our entire program by focusing on learning the track, the car, and the tires available this weekend. As expected, the grip level today was very low and continued to develop throughout the sessions. It is now difficult to determine our competitive position, but the outcome of this first day is encouraging for the rest of the weekend.

Denis Chevrier – Head of Track Engine Teams:

« We covered a lot of kilometers today, which is not a surprise since the aim was to optimize our track time to gather as much information and data as possible to improve the car ahead of tomorrow’s final tests and especially the qualifications. The day went smoothly. On the engine side, we mainly worked on our gear ratios and now we have to wait for tomorrow morning’s session to get a better idea of our relative performance level, but overall, this first day of work is encouraging.

According to a Renault F1 press release