“I think there is no doubt about the progression of the team this year. It’s very much a credit to Daniel who’s been clearly leading the charge of the team and behind him a group of people and a group of mechanics and engineers who are doing a remarkable job.”
Renault are currently fifth, the same spot they occupied last year, and still in with a chance of third while their performances have been markedly better.
Ricciardo, a race winner with Red Bull, has twice been on the podium – something the team did not manage in 2019 – while teammate Esteban Ocon finished second in the Sakhir Grand Prix in Bahrain last weekend.
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“Daniel is a great ambassador, a team leader. He has clearly been instrumental to the changes that we’ve done last year when we had altogether a disappointing season,” said Abiteboul.
“He made an impact and we are so different today to what we were two years and a half ago when we decided to form this partnership. So, in that respect, frankly, it has delivered.
“The irony in all of this is that I believe we are a much stronger team now and he will have to race a much stronger team next year.”
Reuters
