Carlos Sainz Jr. praised Renault’s turnaround at the Spanish Grand Prix after he finished his home event in seventh position.
Renault struggled through Friday’s practice sessions but made gains on Saturday, as Sainz Jr. lined up from ninth position.
Sainz Jr. profited from the retirements of Romain Grosjean and Kimi Raikkonen to move into seventh, and was left upbeat over the pace turnaround of the R.S.18.
“I think it’s a very positive result for me and the team,” said Sainz Jr.
“We can be very proud of what we’ve achieved as this track was not ideal for us.
“We turned things around well since Friday, did a very good start and managed to finish seventh which I think was the best we could hope for.
“It feels great to get another good result at home and I hope the fans have enjoyed the race.
“It’s good progress for the midfield fight and important points for the team. We have areas to work on, but we are making good progress.”
Renault grabbed fourth place from McLaren in the Constructors’ Championship but Team Principal Cyril Abiteboul remains wary that “gremlins” need to be eradicated after a disappointing weekend for Nico Hulkenberg.
Hulkenberg’s one-lap prospects were stymied by a fuel pressure problem and he dropped out in Q1, and he was caught up in the first-lap clash caused by Grosjean.
“The battle is very tight so we need to keep developing and performing at our best,” emphasised Abiteboul.
“We need to eradicate the gremlins, such as those which affected Nico’s qualifying.
“Nico was blameless in an unexpected accident on the first lap, but starting in a lower grid position makes you vulnerable to these sorts of incidents.”
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