Bahrain 2017 - GP Preview - Renault F1

Foreword from Renault Sport Racing Managing Director, Cyril Abiteboul

China was once more a weekend of frustration for us as we were able to qualify in the top ten for the first time in Renault Sport Formula One Team’s history, yet we finished very far from the P7 that Nico started on the grid.

No sooner had we committed both cars to early pit-stops to change to dry tyres than the Virtual Safety Car was upon us, the timing of which gave our rivals the advantage and meant we were on damage limitation thereafter.

The positive is that we’ve shown the pace and reliability required to score but we’ve yet to connect all of the pieces of the jigsaw when required. We’re doing everything we can to ensure we are in the right place at the right time to secure points, and that means being in the top ten when the chequered flag falls.

For the sport, it was a positive to see such a good turn-out in China and the action on track was rewarding for the fans too. It was an exciting race for many reasons, even if it was a frustrating one for us.

And so, Bahrain. The weather is very different from that we saw in Shanghai and so we hope our race result will be too. The heat will test our power unit installation and drivers alike but both Nico and Jolyon are highly professional in their approach so the frustrations of Shanghai are forgotten even though the lessons are learnt.

This weekend we are very much trying to harness the potential shown in the past two races and finally get some points on the board.

Rémi Taffin

Heat and sand are two of the challenges for the R.E.17 power unit in Bahrain as explains Engine Technical Director Remi Taffin.

What’s the power unit feedback after the first two races?

It’s a positive start to the season. Our power units have proved reliable in the first two Grands Prix of the season and have delivered increased performance over where we were last year. This new unit has great scope and we will see later in the season how to introduce performance upgrades once reliability is fully under control. An example: we did see issues related to the MGU-K in pre-season testing for which we took the decision to revert to an earlier generation unit. This solution has proved effective so far and we will only use the newer specification unit once we’re happy it can deliver reliably.

What are the challenges of the Bahrain International Circuit?

The two particular challenges are the heat and the sand. It’s one of the hottest circuits we visit all year and this will test the power unit itself as well as the installation and cooling systems. Even though the race takes place later in the day than when we first started coming here, we do run daytime practice and there can be a load of heat radiated from the track surface. The other issue is the sand. It can be quite windy here and the sand from the surrounding desert means our air filtration systems leading into the engine have to really do their job.

Performance-wise, what’s possible in the third Grand Prix of the season?

The first two races have definitely shown that we car challenging for points. Nico’s P7 qualifying performance in Shanghai, which is quite a power-hungry track with its very long straight, shows we should be in the fight no matter what the location. We have run reliably on the power unit side at the last two races and we will always do what’s needed to achieve this target for both cars. Hopefully Bahrain will be our first points of 2017.

Nico Hulkenberg

After a great qualifying performance in Shanghai it was a punishing and penalising Chinese Grand Prix for our Hulk, who’s hoping for better things in Bahrain.

How are you approaching race three of 2017?

I’m heading to Bahrain with fewer winter clothes in my suitcase after the cold and wet we had in Shanghai; it should be a big contrast and I have my sunscreen at the ready! In terms of the venue, the Bahrain International Circuit is a great facility and it’s quite a technical track with the added challenges of a variable wind direction and the scope for sand on track too. I really like Bahrain and the atmosphere there.

What’s the key to getting a good performance on the Bahrain International Circuit?

It’s a technical track and you have to be smooth and gentle yet, obviously, as fast as possible. Sand is a crucial element if it’s windy and gusty it gets blown on to the track so from one session to another can vary a lot. You’re always adapting to the grip levels as well as the wind direction, which can also present a challenge to getting the perfect lap. We know it’s going to be pretty hot, but that’s not so much of a factor now as we race far later than we used to here and it does cool reasonably quickly once the sun is down.

What’s notable on a lap?

There are a decent amount of challenges. There’s a long straight with hard braking into turn one where you need to lose about 240kph and it’s easy to go too deep into the corner. It’s pretty traction limited on exit so you’re fighting the rear end. It will be interesting to see how much difference there is with the new wider tyres and the greater downforce.

T4 is another heavy braking point into what is quite a long corner and a little off camber. T5-6 is a very fast combination and pretty good fun if you nail it right. T8 is a tight and slow hairpin and another place where it’s easy to out-brake yourself with front-locking, especially if you get off-line. T9-10 is a long left-hander where you’re braking deep into it, trail-braking is always difficult because of the propensity for front-locking once more as well as the variability of wind direction trying to trick you too; headwind is your friend for braking late, tailwind is your enemy. The final sector is very fast and flowing which sets you up for the long, fast pit straight.

Predictions for the race?

Let’s see what happens.

Jolyon Palmer

Bahrain International Circuit is a venue that has been good to Jolyon Palmer in the past, with a visit to the top step of the podium in the GP2 Series in 2014 to his name. Points are the target for this year’s visit to Sakhir.

What can we expect from you in Bahrain?

I quite like the track and I have won there in the past so that definitely spurs me on after a couple of Grands Prix which have fallen short of expectations. I’ll jump in the car on Friday and be working with my crew to get the maximum possible from each session then we absolutely are targeting points from the race as we’ve seen the potential of the car; all I need is a clean weekend.

What are the challenges of Bahrain International Circuit?

There is a lot of track evolution as it is very sandy at the start of the weekend, and then the track gets more and more rubber down, so conditions change a lot. The weather is almost always sunny, but it can be quite windy, which can blow sand onto the track. The fact it’s a night race is pretty interesting. In terms of set-up, practice 1 and 3 are hard as they are a lot hotter than the race but there is a lot we can do in procedural terms, such as aero tests, and understanding this generation of car at this track.

There are a lot of straights so plenty of overtaking opportunities and it should make for a good race.

Do you expect a different weekend from Shanghai?

In many ways yes, especially with the weather! I’ll be very surprised if we have to fit the Wet or Intermediate tyres this weekend. With dry conditions there’s less chance of difficult circumstances like we saw in Shanghai so everything should be in our favour for a more straightforward race weekend and that’s what we need to get some points down.