Q&A with Jean-François Caubet

Some good news for Renault Sport F1 this weekend, with the announcement that the partnership between Viry and Red Bull Racing has been extended.

What are your feelings on this ?

It is very good news for Renault for three reasons. The first is that this shows we are working on a long term strategy. That we have signed for five years with Red Bull Racing emphasises our repositioning as an engine supplier. Additionally the results we have achieved are good and justify our commitment. The second is that although the technology that will come into F1 in the future is something we completely support, to develop the new V6 turbo engine and the required electric systems we needed to work with a large team. We are comfortable with the engine part, but to perfectly integrate the electric systems into a chassis, we need to work with a team of Red Bull’s calibre. Finally, the third reason is that we have a solid five year plan now. Deals in F1 considered ‘long term’ tend to be two years, so it is very reassuring for our future !

Why have RBR and RSF1 signed for a relatively long period of time ?

We started to discuss the situation with Red Bull Racing in January. We agreed that in F1 it is important to build long term relationships and to get projects underway before the competition. We introduced the V8 engine with huge success as we had started work on the project very quickly. Starting early gives a real competitive advantage. We had already started to work towards the 2013 four cylinder inline engine with Red Bull, but that also required development resources. Obviously we were delayed in May and June with the changes to the regulations and the discussions concerning the L4 and the V6, but since the 2014 regulations have been agreed we decided to quickly sign the deal and reaffirm our F1 policy.

Red Bull Racing Renault, Williams, Lotus Renault GP and Team Lotus – RSF1 will have a big presence in the paddock next year…

Yes, we will have four teams…we can see what the future holds ! We did not want to put any of our teams in a compromised position, certain teams will want to develop their own electric systems or specific batteries, but we will provide the same engine to each team. I am sure we will have four satisfied clients and I am sure that other teams will be interested as well.

Why choose Italy to make this announcement ?

We would have liked to make the announcement in Hungary, but the finer points took some time to confirm. However there’s a certain interest in putting out this news on Ferrari home ground !