Renault

For a team that was called the "yellow teapot" in its initial races, Renault sure has come a long way! In a see-saw involvement in F1 that has seen them move from being a full-fledged team to engine supplier, Renault has seen it all.

Renault entered Formula 1 in late 1977 with the first ever turbocharged engine to be used in F1. Unfortunately, the car was unreliable and would remain so for the next couple of years despite improvements to the engine and build of the car. Along the way, however, Renault had started to make a mark as a constructor and began starting from pole position every once in a while!

By the 1980s, Renault had started to move higher and also had a few wins under their belt now. Rene Arnoux was one of the two drivers employed by Renault and he was steadily adding to the team's tally of wins and reputation with Jean-Pierre Jabouille until he suffered a serious crash in Canada in had to be replaced with Alain Prost.

Prost's time with Renault established the team's reputation as a forerunner and Renault won 11 races in 1981-82 with Prost winning nine and Arnoux two. Renault struggled a bit after Prost left them in 1982 for Ferrari, but the real problem for them came in 1985 when financial problems forced them to first become mere engine suppliers the following year, but completely pull out at the end of the season.

Just three years later, Renault returned to F1 but again... still as engine suppliers. They joined hands with Williams and made steady progress until 1992 when their active-ride engine clinched them the title, a feat they would repeat with the Renault engine in 1993. The combine was well on their way to a third title in 1994 until Ayrton Senna, the lead driver for Williams, died in an accident. Damon Hill tried his best, but could not stop Michael Schumacher. Interestingly, Schumacher was the only driver between 1992 and 1997 to win the title in a non-Renault powered car!

In 2000, Renault returned to Formula 1 when they bought over the Benetton Formula 1 team. Results, though, were hard to come by and after much changing and chopping of personnel and equipment, Renault finally seemed to have got it right when they challenged for the second place in the constructors' championship in 2004. Eventually, they would finish third, but the stage had been set...

The last two seasons have been the best for Renault and as a Formula 1 team, they have won everything available for the first time. Although their premier driver has left the team, hopes are still high of a hat-trick.


Team Boss: Flavio Briatore

Races: 223

Race Wins: 33

Constructor's Championships: 2

Engine: Renault V8 RS27

Chassis: R27 - Renault F1

Suspension: RenaultF1

Brakes: Hitco/AP Racing

Tyres: Bridgestone

Transmission: Semi-auto 7 speeds

Other:
Engine power: Over 18,500 rpm
GearBox: 7-speed unit + reverse
Weight: 605 kgs (including driver, camera and ballast)
Dimensions: 4800 mm x 1800 mm x 950 mm
Valves: 4 valves per cylinder; pneumatic valve system
Total displacement: 2.4 litres


Team Personnel:
Team manager: -
Designer: Tim Densham
Chief engineer: Rob White
Drivers: Heikki Kovalainen(Finland), Giancarlo Fisichella (Italy)
Test driver: Nelson Piquet Jr, Ricardo Zonta

Renault confident of catching BMW

Giancarlo Fisichella is confident that Renault can take third place off BMW in this year's Constructors' Championship.

Although Renault entered the 2007 season intent on retaining both World titles, a tough first half of the season has seen the team's goal revised to catching BMW for third place.

However, in the last two races Renault have done the opposite, losing ground to BMW, with the gap sitting at 25 points ahead of the tenth race of the season, the European GP.

"It is fair to say that the last two races were a bit disappointing, all the more so because they were our home races," said Fisichella.

"We knew that it would be a tough battle with BMW: all of the teams are making progress, and our challenge is to do so faster than them in order to get ahead and try to close the gap in the Championship."

The Roman is, however, confident that Renault are heading the right way and that it's just a matter of time before they take third place off their German rivals.

"We are going in the right direction, and everybody is doing their maximum," he added. "I am convinced that if we carry on like this, our hard work will pay off."

The team's technical director Bob Bell agrees that Fisi that clawing back to the deficit to BMW is Renault's revised target for the second half of this year's Championship.

"The target is clear: to continue closing the gap to BMW on track, and to begin doing so in the Championship," he said.

"If you look back to the opening races of the year, it was as if we were in a different race to them. Now, we are regularly qualifying in the top ten, and according to the type of circuit, racing with our direct rivals.

"Giancarlo and Heikki are both pushing very hard and getting the maximum from the car. They now need more performance to fight on equal terms with BMW.

"That is what we are focused on providing them throughout the second half of the year, beginning this weekend at the Nurburgring."

Raikkonen gatecrashes Hamilton party

Kimi Raikkonen spectacularly gatecrashed Lewis Hamilton's hoped-for British Grand Prix party by claiming his first Silverstone victory.

All the hype had surrounded Hamilton in the build-up to the race, in particular after the world championship leader put his McLaren on pole.

But it was Ferrari star Raikkonen who stole his thunder, claiming back-to-back victories for the first time in almost two years.

Hamilton was forced to settle for third - extending his run of podium finishes to nine - as a combination of one bad pit stop and seemingly poor tyre choice allowed team-mate Fernando Alonso to take second.

But with eight grands prix remaining, Hamilton still has a 12-point lead over Alonso, with Raikkonen now third in the title race and 18 points adrift.

Felipe Massa has dropped to fourth in the standings as he could only take fifth after an aborted start led to him beginning the race from the pit lane instead of from fourth on the grid.

The Brazilian, though, still managed to blitz his way through the field to claim four precious points.

As such, if he had managed a clean getaway, he would almost certainly have knocked Hamilton off the podium for the first time.

But what a shame for Hamilton, in particular after making the start he would have dreamed about overnight.

McLaren, though, gambled by preferring the harder compound tyre from the off, compared to the soft option for the Ferraris, so giving them extra grip.

Once the five red lights disappeared at least there was no repeat of Hamilton's poor start in the French Grand Prix at Magny-Cours a week ago.

On that occasion Hamilton was overtaken - for the first time in his Formula One career - by Raikkonen, helping the Finn to his second win for the Maranello marque.

This time around Hamilton was clean away, cutting from left to right across the track to defend the inside line heading into the first corner at Copse.

It was perfect, but at no stage over the following 16 laps was Hamilton able to open any kind of gap on Raikkonen, who remained within a second as he hounded the young Briton.

At one stage on lap 14 'The Iceman' was virtually alongside his McLaren rival, whose first stop two laps later did not go to plan.

Hamilton went to pull away as the lollipop man flicked the sign telling him to engage first gear, despite the fact his car was still being refuelled.

With clean air for two laps Raikkonen put his foot to the floor, and it proved crucial as he emerged from the pit lane ahead of Hamilton.

That battle, though, had deflected the attention off Alonso, who had managed to stay on the coat-tails of the leading duo over the first third of the race.

When he pitted on lap 20 for a 6.3secs stop, it came as a major surprise when he grabbed the lead, with Raikkonen and Hamilton in his wing mirrors.

From that moment hopes of a win on home soil disappeared for the 22-year-old because as the laps ebbed away, so he dropped further and further behind Alonso.

It then became a battle between Alonso and Raikkonen, who held a gap of around five seconds to the Spaniard throughout the middle stint until the second round of pit stops.

Raikkonen stayed out six laps longer than Alonso, providing the second turning point of the race as the Ferrari star reversed the positions, and with it ultimately taking the victory by 2.4secs.

Robert Kubica was fourth for the second successive race for BMW Sauber, holding off Massa in the final third of the race in an enthralling battle.

The remaining points places were taken by the second BMW Sauber of Nick Heidfeld, followed by the Renaults of Heikki Kovalainen and Giancarlo Fisichella.

In the constructors' battle, McLaren hold their 25-point cushion to Ferrari.

British Grand Prix Results

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Pts
1	6	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	59	Winner	2	10
2	1	Fernando Alonso	McLaren-Mercedes	59	+2.4 secs	3	8
3	2	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	59	+39.3 secs	1	6
4	10	Robert Kubica	BMW	59	+53.3 secs	5	5
5	5	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	59	+54.0 secs	4	4
6	9	Nick Heidfeld	BMW	59	+56.3 secs	9	3
7	4	Heikki Kovalainen	Renault	58	+1 Lap	7	2
8	3	Giancarlo Fisichella	Renault	58	+1 Lap	8	1
9	8	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	58	+1 Lap	14
10	7	Jenson Button	Honda	58	+1 Lap	18
11	14	David Coulthard	Red Bull-Renault	58	+1 Lap	12
12	16	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	58	+1 Lap	17
13	17	Alexander Wurz	Williams-Toyota	58	+1 Lap	13
14	22	Takuma Sato	Super Aguri-Honda	57	+2 Laps	21
15	21	Christijan Albers	Spyker-Ferrari	57	+2 Laps	22
16	18	Vitantonio Liuzzi	STR-Ferrari	53	+6 Laps	16
Ret	12	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	43	+16 Laps	10
Ret	23	Anthony Davidson	Super Aguri-Honda	35	+24 Laps	19
Ret	19	Scott Speed	STR-Ferrari	29	+30 Laps	15
Ret	11	Ralf Schumacher	Toyota	22	+37 Laps	6
Ret	20	Adrian Sutil	Spyker-Ferrari	16	+43 Laps	20
Ret	15	Mark Webber	Red Bull-Renault	8	+51 Laps	11

The British Grand Prix Preview

McLaren's Lewis Hamilton firmly believes that he can win this weekend’s British Grand Prix at Silverstone - the first time he will ever race a Formula One car in front of his fellow countrymen.

That is despite Ferrari’s speed here in recent testing and sudden return to form in Magny-Cours - and in spite of all the scandal that has blown up following allegations that a senior McLaren engineer received stolen intellectual property from Ferrari and the ensuing suspension of that engineer.

Both of these factors will add to any pressure Hamilton feels racing at home, but he is convinced that he can join a long list of Britons who have won the British Grand Prix: Sir Stirling Moss and Tony Brooks, Peter Collins, Jim Clark, David Coulthard, Sir Jackie Stewart, James Hunt, Nigel Mansell, John Watson, Damon Hill, Johnny Herbert.

“You can’t win every race, and the most important thing is to be consistent, which I think we are,” he said after finishing third at Magny-Cours. “Both the Ferrari drivers said they made a good step forward, but when you are behind people, as we were in Magny-Cours, it’s a lot harder to show your true pace. I don’t think they were as quick, as much faster than us, as it looked today. Traffic and strategy had a lot to do with that, so I still think we can bounce back at Silverstone, without a doubt.

“I don’t think Ferrari’s sudden speed is worrying. It just shows they’ve made a great step forward and had a slightly better strategy than us. We were always on a three-stop strategy but what happened at the start affected that. After I had made my third pit stop I was a long way behind Felipe so there was no point in me wrenching the neck out of the engine trying to catch him. Throughout the race we were quite consistent on speed, but we need a little more. I am sure that we will make another improvement before Silverstone.

“To be honest, in France I was not disappointed. I don’t like to be overtaken, but that’s the same for everyone. But I was on the podium again and we are the most consistent team and I think we are doing a better job. I have extended my lead in the World Championship, so I couldn’t be happier.

“It is a great feeling to go to Silverstone as the World Championship leader. To do so certainly seemed unimaginable at the start of the season. I’m very, very happy with the job I’ve done and the team have done and I go into my first British GP with the team I always wanted to drive for, and that’s one of the greatest feelings a driver can have.”

After scoring his (and Honda’s) first point of the season, Jenson Button is also feeling a little more upbeat ahead of his home race. “Silverstone will be fun because I have a lot of friends and family coming and the fans treat you the same way even when things are tough. The fans at Silverstone have always been fantastic and there are four Brits to cheer on, so the lead-up will be hectic.”

David Coulthard and Anthony Davidson (in his first British Grand Prix) are both seeking points finishes for Red Bull and Super Aguri respectively, while BMW Sauber and Renault will re-engage their battle for third place overall as Williams look to do well on home ground, Toyota hope to reproduce the speed Jarno Trulli and Ralf Schumacher displaced in the test here in June, and Toro Rosso hope their seamless shift gearbox will translate into Red Bull-matching lap times. With their factory just over the road from the circuit, Spyker would also like to take something good home from this one.

On paper, however, Ferrari are looking very strong. “We are back where we expect to be. You could feel the improvement in the car everywhere, really. In every corner,” Raikkonen said after his second win of the season, which brought the score to two apiece for the four leading contenders.

One thing that may well bring in a degree of uncertainty to the overall equation is the weather, with rain forecast for each day.