Renault sinks further into midfield: ''The car just isn't good enough''

Daniel Ricciardo revealed before the GP of Spain that Cyril Abiteboul will get a tattoo if Ricciardo ends up on the podium. A nice bet, but with P11 and P13 in the race a 'shoey' seems to be out of the question.

Ricciardo's not at the shoey yet.

''It was a tough day and clearly not where we wanted to be. Until now we managed to score every race with a car, so this result is very disappointing. After two good races I didn't expect such a tough weekend. We were close in qualifying, but we have to work hard to be there next time'', Ricciardo said in Renault's press release.

With a thirteenth place for Esteban Ocon it didn't get any better for Renault, although it could have been worse for the Frenchman, who slid his car into the wall during the third free practice session on Saturday afternoon. ''That's all we could have done today, because the car didn't do what we wanted. We just missed the pace compared to Silverstone.''

Renault falls back

So that means there is work to be done for Cyril Abiteboul. The team boss of Renault welcomes Fernando Alonso from 2021 onwards, who has clearly indicated that the arrows should be aimed at 2022. Under the current regulations, however, Renault is sinking further and further into midfield, where the step to the top was the goal.

''It's very simple; the car is not good enough on this track. Barcelona is all about the efficiency of aerodynamics, so that shows what we have to work on. We've made some steps in the winter, but clearly not yet big enough to drive to the front of the midfield. We should be at a point where we can do better than this, so we have to work hard on the next updates'', concludes Abiteboul.