Junior driver for Renault in 2021? "The goal was to achieve that in 2021"

Renault has a clear plan for the coming number of years in Formula 1. Since 2019 Daniel Ricciardo has been driving for the French team and with the arrival of the Australian, Renault is in a multi-year plan to take the team to the top. Renault's team boss, Cyril Abiteboul, explains at Sky Sports what Renault's plan is and to what extent the drivers have influence on that plan.

"The plan is to invest a lot in the 2021 car. Now of course the rule changes go to 2022 but that doesn't mean we don't change the plans right away. We still have a lot to develop in the coming years, to be ready for 2022". Abiteboul indicates that the team's interest is greater than the individual, and that it could just be that there is another driver in the car in 2021.

Driver from the academy for 2021?

"We want Daniel to be part of this plan, but we have to focus on what is missing within the team. The drivers are already performing very well, so the focus should be on the car. We need to make sure that each driver can offer the best for the team and that we meet everyone's expectations".

So according to Abiteboul, it's the team's interest for the drivers' sake. "The drivers will play a role in the plan we have". If this doesn't happen, the team still has a good alternative. "We have a driver's academy in which we have invested a lot of time and money. The goal was to bring a talent into Formula 1 by 2021. 2021 is next year, so that is also an option. Whether we also have the driver for that, we still have to see that", Abiteboul concludes.