Renault came away with a double points finish today as Fernando Alonso and Nelson Piquet finished in fourth and sixth places respectively in the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Both drivers made good starts with Alonso gaining a place to run in a solid sixth position during the early stages, while Piquet enjoyed a combative opening lap to remain in the top ten during his opening stint.
Alonso held ground during the first round of pit-stops as he waged a race-long battle with the Ferrari of Kimi Raikkonen, while Piquet took advantage of a longer first stint to play himself into contention and into the points.
As the race unfolded, both drivers continued to race competitively, running long middle stints to minimise their time on the super-soft tyres. They emerged from their second pit-stops in fifth and seventh places, before gaining another position following Massa’s retirement.
Having scored eight points this weekend to move up to fifth in the constructors’ championship, the team now heads into the summer break and will reconvene in Valencia for the European Grand Prix in three weeks time.
Fernando Alonso“We fought hard today and we were on the pace with a car that was working well, which is encouraging for the rest of the championship. We scored some important points which is satisfying, even though we could have maybe been on the podium. We must now continue working hard, but today’s result shows that we are moving in the right direction.”
Nelson Piquet“I am happy with my result this weekend. I scored some valuable points which is promising for the rest of the season. I made a good start, but unfortunately I made a small mistake on the first lap, which meant that I lost the two positions that I had made up. It shows that at this level you cannot afford to make the smallest error. I am continuing to learn and I am determined to continue building on this progress when we go to Valencia at the end of the month.”
Flavio Briatore, Managing Director“Today’s result is a solid and encouraging one for the whole team. Our two drivers did a great job and we are now ready to continue pushing hard in the second half of the season to finish in fourth place in the constructors’ championship.”
Pat Symonds, Executive Director of Engineering“It’s a great result for the team and probably our best race of the year. Both cars had to race hard and we had to think our way carefully through to the end of the race. The results and points achieved today are a good reward for lots of hard work in the team and at the factories.”
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