Formula One news

Fisichella: R27 design needs much work

Giancarlo Fisichella believes that Renault needs to make radical changes to its R27 to close the gap on Ferrari and to a lesser extent McLaren. According to the 34-year-old, the team can take no aspect of the car for granted as they look to improve its performance.

"I wouldn't leave any stone unturned, we need to work hugely on the design and on the front end of the car," Fisichella told Italian magazine Autosprint in an interview.

"We'd need to do something that changes the car completely. At Renault they know exactly what route to take, they are working on it day and night, but solving the issue may take a long time.

"Therefore in the next few races, it's just a case of damage limitation for us; working on the aerodynamic parts and on the set-up, but not much else."

The Italian finished a disappointing fifth in Melbourne and was over a minute adrift of race winner Kimi Raikkonen. Fisichella thinks that the team can only improve the car by going back to the drawing board.

"Concerning the work that the team did at the track, there's nothing I can say, because the car has good set-up, it's well balanced, we know how to get the best out of the car.

"It's different with regards to the project's aerodynamics and mechanics. It's clear the move from Michelin to Bridgestone for us has been tougher than for McLaren, for example.

"In Melbourne the gap to Ferrari during the race was almost embarrassing, 1.6 seconds from Raikkonen, but it was also half a second to McLaren. This is unacceptable," he added.

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