ESPNF1 Staff
October 1, 2011
Eric Boullier says Renault will be more competitive in Japan © Sutton Images
Renault team principal Eric Boullier says the team has put the Singapore Grand Prix result behind it and is looking ahead to more competitive weekends.
Vitaly Petrov finished behind Heikki Kovalainen's Lotus on pace at Marina Bay, while Bruno Senna didn't fare much better as he crossed the line 15th. The reason for Renault's performance was due to the car being weak in slow corners, and Boullier said the team would be working to remove that trait from next season's car.
"To be honest we've all put this experience behind us," Boullier said. "We fully understand why we performed so poorly and the explanation is simple: slow corners in the 60-100km/h range just don't do it for the R31. It is written in its DNA. We could have worked three weeks on the set-up but we would not have found a second in laptime. This is what we know, and our mid-term mission is to make sure that we solve this issue with the R32 which should not be a problem."
Looking ahead to the Japanese Grand Prix, Boullier said the aim was to qualify in the top ten and score points once again.
"Things should get better for us on quicker tracks and Suzuka is one of them. In Japan, we expect to return to the level of performance we saw in Belgium and Italy. Our mission will be to focus on getting both cars into Q3. From then on, the weekend should be pretty straightforward."
Boullier also clarified some changes to the team structure following Steve Nielsen's final race in Singapore, which sees Alan Permane promoted.
"It's very simple. Part of what were Steve's responsibilities will be taken over by Alan Permane, who is now Track Operations Director. In addition, John Wickham is part of our team and further changes will be announced shortly. I expect this transition to be very smooth."
Credit: ESPN F1 (en.espnf1.com)
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