Formula One news

Renault fine tuning setups

The Renault team is looking to perfect the individual configurations of its cars in Saturday's final practice before qualifying. The second practice session on Friday left the two R29s in tenth and fifteenth positions, as Piquet led the way. Alonso was clearly pushing his car to the limit, with a particularly hairy moment as he ran wide at Turn 14.

"We tried not to do too many laps today as I wasn't feeling a hundred percent," explained Alonso, who is still recovering from an ear infection. "It's a very demanding weekend in terms of the heat because we sweat so much, but it was important that we still got enough information." The 2005 and 2006 World Champion experimented with various settings throughout the session which included changes to the ride height and front suspension of the Renault, as well as with tyres. "I hope what we have learnt today will be useful for tomorrow, and allow us to work on improving the setup," he continued. "Hopefully I will recover more this evening and feel better tomorrow so that I can give my maximum in qualifying, which I think will be one of the most important parts of this weekend, so we need to be ready for that."

Nelson Piquet Jr.

As Fernando somewhat suffered inside the car, Nelson Piquet was the leading Renault despite ongoing worries of a reoccurance of the brake problem he suffered in Australia last weekend. "We had a good first day with no major problems, so things look a bit better than they did in Melbourne," the Brazilian said after the session. "There is still a lot of work to do, but I'm happy that we improved the car between the two sessions - it will be a tough race with these temperatures, but I look forward to it."

more news

• 28 Nov.
  • Raikkonen close to Citroen WRC deal
  • Tung looking for 'useful' test
• 27 Nov.
  • Montreal seals Formula One contract
  • GPUpdate TV: Domenicali - high hopes for 2010
  • Jerez test: The cast
  • Wurz plays down USF1 link
  • Renault to test Baguette, Tung and Di Grassi
  • Alonso makes second visit to Ferrari
  • Force India confirms Sutil and Liuzzi
  • All new teams now FOTA members
  • Sauber buys team back from BMW
  • De la Rosa pushing for race drive
  • Ecclestone: I won't buy Donington
  • Haug becomes part of F1 in Schools
  • Volkswagen to provide F1 engines?
• 26 Nov.
  • Alguersuari: 2010 contract is signed
  • Conway and Ericsson to test for Mercedes
  • 4 driver options left for Lotus
  • 'F1 in need of Schumacher return' - Verstappen
• 25 Nov.
  • 'Fantastic opportunity' - Di Resta on Force India test
  • Recap: N.Technology court bid fails
  • BMW testers excited about Jerez
  • Brawn disappointed with Button drives, ponders Lauda
  • Piquet to drive in Massa kart race
  • Brawn aero chief wins award
  • Gillett disappointed with government position
  • Mercedes hopes to confirm line-up by Christmas
• 24 Nov.
  • Briatore verdict expected in January
  • Donington still hopeful over F1 race
  • Montreal race confirmation imminent
  • Massa names drivers for karting event
  • Campos car passes FIA safety tests
  • Strong test could seal drive, says Mallya
  • Force India to test di Resta and Hildebrand
  • Courts to hear Briatore case
  • Silverstone GP deal forthcoming
• 23 Nov.
  • GPUpdate TV: Sam Michael - building on 2009
  • Theissen waiting on entry decision
  • Mercedes delighted with Rosberg confirmation
  • Confirmed: Rosberg to Mercedes for 2010

Homepage