Renault Report – Alonso and Piquet are doing their best

Renault experienced a difficult race this afternoon at the Sepang circuit in Malaysia, with Fernando Alonso and Nelson Piquet finishing in 8th and 11th places respectively in this second event of the 2008 World Championship.

After starting from the 7th and 13th positions, the team had high hopes of seeing its drivers climb back into the points, but the level of competitiveness within the chasing pack quickly forced the Renault F1 Team to lower its objectives. Fernando Alonso lost ground at the start, caught in traffic at the first corner, but managed through his efforts to recover the point for eighth place.

Fernando Alonso – 8th:

« I did the best I could today and I scored a small point. We have been able to see that under normal racing conditions, we are a bit behind in terms of pure performance. Our goal for now is to try to finish in the points at every race and to work well in preparation for the next events so that we can then aim for better results. »

Nelson [Piquet], for his part, completed his first race today and finished just outside the top 10. The young Brazilian was very diligent this weekend and will undoubtedly be able to build on what he learned here in Malaysia for the next event in Bahrain in two weeks.

Nelson Piquet – 11th:

« I am happy to have finished the race; it was my first goal after my race in Melbourne. I learned a lot today and I realize that the fight is very tight in the pack where we are and that we really have to execute the perfect race. The pace is very high, but I finished close to my teammate, which is encouraging for me. The race was tough and the car is not yet competitive enough, but I am making progress and hope to continue in Bahrain for the next event. »

Flavio Briatore, General Manager:

Unfortunately, we didn’t manage to make the most of our grid position with Fernando, and we struggled to defend our place in the pack despite the efforts of our two drivers. We score a consolation point and must now work hard to resolve our issues and come back stronger in two weeks in Bahrain.

Pat Symonds, Executive Director of Engineering:

« We competed in a rather traditional race today, which allowed us to have a clearer view of our situation. There isn’t much to say about our race as both our drivers had a race without major issues and there weren’t really any other strategic options available. It is now clear that we need to work hard to improve our car and that there is a real gap to bridge with the leading teams. »

According to the Renault F1 Team