Posted on August 27th, 2008 by Oliver White
Ever since Nelson Piquet Jr. scored a morale-boosting second place in the German Grand Prix, Renault have been taking a slightly different look at the way they use their tyres during a typical race weekend. What prompted Renault to investigate the four boots on their R28 was Piquet’s sudden increase in pace that immediately followed a period behind the safety car. And now team mate Fernando Alonso wants the team to conduct a proper test to hopefully establish some more accurate findings. Continue Reading
Posted on July 30th, 2008 by Oliver White
The forty-nineth photograph to feature in BlogF1’s caption contest. You know the drill, think of something funny and witty to say and leave it as a comment below. Here’s a strange image from the German Grand Prix weekend. The driver being captured is Nelson Piquet Jr, who would go on to take his first career podium later in the day. Continue Reading
Posted on June 22nd, 2008 by Oliver White
Nelson Piquet Jr. has endured a disastrous start to his Formula One career, especially when his results are compared to his team mate. Heikki Kovalainen last year had a tough time in the Renault, but the Finn eventually got to grips with the car in ended up hauling in more points than his then-team mate Giancarlo Fisichella. While I don’t think Piquet will be able to reign in Fernando Alonso this year, was the French Grand Prix the race that saw Piquet turn his fortunes around? Continue Reading
Posted on June 15th, 2008 by Oliver White
Renault pilot Nelson Piquet Jr has topped the timing sheet on the final day of testing which was completed on Saturday at Circuit de Catalunya in Spain. The Brazilian toured the Montmelo track 112 times, the most of all the drivers present and in the two days of his running, has racked up 141 laps. Piquet’s fastest lap was 0.4s faster than local driver Pedro De La Rosa in the McLaren, who edged out Luca Badoer in the Ferrari, Badoer having driven the F2008 for the whole three-day test. Continue Reading
Posted on May 15th, 2008 by Oliver White
Day two of testing at French circuit Paul Ricard has seen a change in leader as Kimi Raikkonen powered his Ferrari to the top spot, just ahead of Heikki Kovalainen in the McLaren. BMW rounded out the usual top three, with Robert Kubica going marginally quicker than he did yesterday. David Coulthard, Jenson Button and Sebastien Bourdais all ran well during the day, finishing fourth, fifth and sixth quickest respectively. Continue Reading
Posted on April 26th, 2008 by Oliver White
The qualifying session for the 2008 Spanish Grand Prix threw up a couple of surprises, but I think all the talking points have centred around one driver - Fernando Alonso. The double world champion was able to place his Renault R28 on provisional pole position with his final lap of the day. Unfortunately to the euphoric crowds who stood, cheered and applauded their hero, Kimi Raikkonen followed Alonso over the line with a pole-stealing lap. The Finnish driver simply had a faster car on the day. However, while many expect Alonso is light on fuel, we need to consider Nelson Piquet Jr’s lap as well, the Brazilian managing to get in to tenth. Continue Reading
Posted on March 7th, 2008 by Oliver White
As the build up to the 2008 season continues, today we have the the second of BlogF1’s guest post series to enjoy. This time we welcome the thoughts of Sidepodcast writer and podcaster, Christine Blachford. Christine discusses the return of Fernando Alonso to Renault and the pairing of the Spaniard with young hotshot Nelson Piquet Jr. Continue Reading
Posted on March 5th, 2008 by Oliver White
Every season brings with it a few young hopefuls, eager to learn and show off their driving talent while trying not to get swamped among the media, PR, and general business of racing motor cars. These particularly entrants are known as the rookies, and presuming Super Aguri stay with Sato and Davidson, 2008 will see two brand new stars join the grid, and a further two who have completed only a few races between them. Continue Reading
Posted on February 28th, 2008 by Oliver White
From heroes to zeroes, the story of Renault’s 2007 campaign is one of disappointment and anguish. Following two sensational seasons in Formula One, the frugally budgeted Anglo-French squad fell on their backsides with the R27, not helped by the defection of their wonder-driver Fernando Alonso to rivals McLaren. Despite losing out to BMW and slipping out of the top three (McLaren inclusive), Renault do have a lot of talent working away in their Enstone factory, and with a little more effort and maybe some luck the flamboyant Flavio could raise the manufacturer squad back up to the top within a year. Whether or not Renault choose to wait that long though is another question entirely. Continue Reading
Posted on January 31st, 2008 by Oliver White
Today was Renault-day with regards to new car launches, and the Anglo-French squad chose Paris to unveil their 2008 machine to the media. As mentioned earlier, the team hope to find their winning ways again, although rookie Nelson Piquet Jr is cautious to not hype his own chances too much. While Fernando spoke of being pleased to be back at Enstone, Piquet Jr is just thankful for the opportunity to prove himself and hopes for a consistent season in 2008. Here are some more quotes and photographs from Renault’s R28 launch. Continue Reading
