Renault Sport President Jerome Stoll says the French manufacturer is aiming to finish at least fifth in the Formula 1 constructors’ championship in 2017.
Speaking at the launch of Renault’s 2017 car, Stoll believes Renault now has the people in place and infrastructure to finish fifth.
“We have a car developed by us, and we expect to be fifth in the championship,” Stoll said.
“We have the team, we have the drivers, we have the partners. We are completely managed by Renault now.”
Renault finished a lowly ninth in the constructors’ championship in 2016, scoring just eight points and despite this, managing director Cyril Abiteboul believes it is a realistic aim and scoring points is a must.
“We are aiming for fifth in the constructors’ championship and it’s clear that to achieve this we need to be scoring points regularly,” said Abiteboul.
“This is a target for the team collectively, and the drivers individually.
“In terms of our drivers, Nico joins us with a lot of experience and talent.
“We expect him to deliver from day one and we are confident this will be the case.
“Jolyon had a strong rookie season where he developed and performed well and we expect the natural continuation of this.
“Both drivers should complement each other and the team should flourish with this pairing.
“2017 will be the second season of what is a long-term plan. We are not expecting miracles overnight, but we are clear on where we ultimately want to be.”
