#04

RACE PREVIEW RUSSIA Sochi // 28/29/30 April 2017

Content // // // Nico Hülkenberg // // Sergey Sirotkin // Track Notes

Cyril Abiteboul FOREWORD Bahrain showed both another positive step in our progress, and reiterated an area where we

must focus our attention. Cyril Abiteboul Sport Racing Managing Director

For the first time in the team’s short history, we Nico and Sergey drove in the test and both were able Elsewhere, Renault reiterated its long term qualified both cars in the top ten. This was thanks to to give positive feedback. Sergey impressed us by commitment to Formula 1 by showing the R.S. 2027 at teamwork from everyone at the track and everyone at getting up to speed very quickly in this new generation the Shanghai Motor Show on April 19. The reaction to Enstone and Viry. Nico was able to deliver the fast laps car, despite having not driven since last year. this concept car outlining what Formula 1 could be in whenever needed and Jolyon staged an impressive ten years’ time has been fantastic. We look forward to Sergey will drive in FP1 in Sochi alongside Jolyon. recovery from a difficult FP3. continuing this conversation. Russia is an important market for us and it is good for In the Grand Prix we did score our first points of the them to see their local hero out in action. Finally, last weekend saw the first of our season with Nico, but this joy was tempered by the Academy members get their seasons underway with We’re hoping that the work of the test can be applied acknowledgement that we should have scored more. the opening round of the Eurocup. and all the new parts tested will work as well as they , and Sun Yue Yang were Our focus at the factory in Enstone and then at the did in evaluation when we take to the track in Sochi. all in action with some strong potential seen between test in Bahrain which followed the Grand Prix has Both cars in the points in Russia would be a fantastic them at the start of their rookie years in this highly been seeking how to unlock the pace of the R.S.17 in reward and another step forward in our 2017 journey. competitive championship. race conditions.

“ Sergey will drive in FP1 in Sochi alongside Jolyon. Russia is an important market for us and it is good for them to see their local hero out in action. ”

BOB BELL

Engineering Performance After three Grands Prix and one in-season test, Chief Technical Officer Bob Bell looks at the state of play with the R.S.17 heading to the Russian Grand Prix.

Bob Bell Renault Sport One Team Q&A Chief Technical Officer

What’s the outlook heading to current car performance. We have you can get away with this over the The big positive is that the car Russia? a reasonable understanding of course of a qualifying lap - where has the basic pace to be able We head to Sochi with a why this is and have a number of fresh tyres can mask the balance to be qualified well. Our current reasonable degree of optimism. developments to address this in issue – the performance is less issue is extracting that pace in We have shown a good the realm of aerodynamics and consistent when you take to the a race scenario. If you have the progression so far in 2017, most suspension. We tested new parts longer runs of race stints. pace the key is maintaining it; it’s notably illustrated by qualifying – including a new front wing – in easier to translate qualifying pace both cars in the top ten for the first Bahrain designed to add more The R.S.17 has a somewhat to race pace than to find basic time in Bahrain as well as securing aero-performance to the car and nervous corner entry, followed performance. our first points finish. There’s no also make it slightly more benign by mid-turn understeer, followed doubt we have work still to do, to engender better race pace. It’s by a nervous exit making finding What’s wanted in Russia? equally it’s clear we’ve taken a a positive of testing somewhere traction a challenge. If we can Our target for Sochi is another tangible step forward. where you’ve just had a Grand Prix address these areas, our drivers step forward from our performance that there is a lot of comparable will have a very effective race car in Bahrain. We’d be happy with a Where’s the current focus of data for evaluation. at their disposal. We believe the similar qualifying position allied to development? problems are aero related, so we’re improved race pace. It’s pretty clear and we’re not Why does the car seem to qualify primarily looking for the solution under any illusion; we are currently better than it races? there. Once we have the entry- qualifying better than we race The R.S.17 is not as well balanced phase of the corner sorted, the rest and that’s a symptom of our as we’d like over a full stint. Whilst should follow more easily.

“ The big positive is that the car has the basic pace to be able to be qualified well. ” NICO HÜLKENBERG

jolyon palmer jolyon palmer Planning a Revolution Sochi Autodrom has been a positive location for Jolyon Palmer, it being the track where he secured his 2014 GP2 Series championship title, through a race win. After his first

top ten qualifying performance in Bahrain, Jolyon’s aiming Jolyon Palmer / Race Driver #30 for his first top ten race finish of 2017.

Q&A

What are your thoughts on What’s the challenge of Sochi in How do you feel progress has Sochi? a Formula 1 car? been so far this season? “ Getting into the top ten in For me the best thing about It’s a smooth and still pretty new There’s definitely been progress, qualifying for the first time Russia is that I won the first ever track with plenty to think about in but there’s certainly more to GP2 Series race there and that its layout. We’ve seen that it can come. Getting into the top ten in Bahrain was particularly race won me the championship, start with pretty low grip levels at in qualifying for the first time satisfying. ” so I have very good memories of the beginning of the weekend, but in Bahrain was particularly the Sochi Autodrom! I got a great it will be interesting to see how satisfying. I’d struggled a lot in start so led from the first lap but the extra downforce of 2017 copes the FP3 session, so myself and was under a lot of pressure all the with that. Last year we struggled my engineer, Chris Richards, sat way. It’s great to win any race, but to get the car where we wanted in down and we changed the set-up to win a race where you’ve had qualifying but we went better in of the car so it worked far better. pressure at every turn, that’s a real the race. My race in Bahrain was frustrating achievement. as we weren’t able to unlock the pace from the car – which was something Nico suffered from too. The real positive is that the team is taking a step forward at every race so we’re hopeful that Sochi continues in this vein.

jolyon palmer

NICO HÜLKENBERG nico HüLKENBERG From Russia with Love Nico Hülkenberg heads to Sochi with a sense of satisfaction after a productive Bahrain test as well as wearing a happy face for a track he rather likes.

Nico Hülkenberg / Race Driver #27 Q&A

What’s the mood headed to Sochi? What are your thoughts of the track when you’re what these areas are and what we need to do to improve I have quite a bit of optimism! I think we made good behind the wheel? them. We want more downforce and to improve the car progress to enable us to improve our race pace for Sochi It’s one of the longer laps of the season and this is aerodynamically and we want to use the tyres better in the when we were testing in Bahrain and we have some new compounded by there being a lot of corners. This makes it race. bits for the car to facilitate this too. Of course, the Sochi a big challenge for any driver as you need to get every turn Autodrom is a completely different circuit, so we can’t in each sector together perfectly, especially in qualifying. What’s you track record like in Russia? accurately predict our relative performance until we get It’s a very quick and flowing track, which is why I like it so I haven’t had the greatest amount of luck in Sochi with two there, but I’m feeling positive. much. There are a number of tricky bits too, especially retirements and a 12th placed finish, so it would be great braking into the corner at the end of the back straight. The to score my first points there in 2017! What do you think of the event? final sector is a bit more technical and slow in its nature, I like travelling to Russia, it’s a cool place and I like the track but overall it’s a fun track. Three races in, how are you enjoying racing the latest and infrastructure there. Of course, my main focus is on generation F1 car wheel to wheel? the track itself and it’s a good one to drive, so I go there What was on your wish list for improvement at the It’s fun, but you get used to new things so quickly! We’re on with a happy face. . I think we’ve made good progress Bahrain test? top of the new level of downforce from a driving point of with the car with some positive updates, which should Of course, I’m a race driver so I want improvement in view; it’s quickly the status quo. It’s a different experience also make me happy. every area! The car is basically good, it’s just a number racing wheel to wheel, but I want to be doing this more details where we need to improve. The positive is we know through fighting my way up the order!

“ My main focus is on the track itself and it’s a good one to drive, so I go there with a happy face. . ”

sergey sirotkin sergey sirotkin Rushing Around After a productive test in Bahrain, Renault Sport Formula One Team Third and Reserve Driver Sergey Sirotkin will be jumping into Nico Hülkenberg’s R.S.17

for FP1 in Sochi. He can’t wait… Sergey Sirotkin / Third and Reserve Driver #46

Q&A

It’s fair to say you’re looking How was the Bahrain test? What do you think to the track? Is it good to be in the car at forward to FP1? The Bahrain test was a good first I drove last year in Sochi so I’m home? Obviously I’m very much looking time in the R.S.17. The cars are familiar with what to expect. It’s I’m proud of being a Russian driver forward to it! I’ve learn so far this really quick this year but I feel back a modern-style F1 track with so to be in front of thousands year that it’s not very easy to be in rhythm despite having not been some interesting aspects to it. of Russian fans is always going at a race track but not in the car. in a race car for six months. It was There have been some interesting to be a highlight. That said, I Watching other drivers in action a full programme and I enjoyed Grands Prix there. The most would settle with being in the car and competing is pretty frustrating every second of being in the car, challenging sector is the final one, anywhere! Of course, there will be as I want to be out there. I am even if the programme was not off the back straight, as there are a lot of attention in the press and learning a lot with the team and it the most exciting for the driver. some tricky braking areas through media, and many people I know is a positive and enjoyable process, Ultimately, I’m here to do what the corner after corner, then it’s really will be there - which is always just not as positive and enjoyable team tell me to do, so that’s my crucial to keep the rear of the nice - however my focus is fully on as racing itself. approach to FP1; if I have to do car under control through this track. I’m there to do the best job aero runs, that’s what I do. If I have sequence. possible and focus on the entire to drive a qualifying simulation on race weekend not just FP1 when Ultrasoft tyres, then that’s what I’ll I’m in the car. do too! “ The Bahrain test was a good first time in the R.S.17. The cars are really quick this year but I feel back in rhythm… ” NICO HÜLKENBERG

renault sport round up round up

Rowland Third in F2 Standings

No sooner was he announced as Renault Sport Formula One Team Development Driver than Oliver Rowland was out in action in the newly-named FIA Formula 2 Championship (previously known as the GP2 Series). A man on a mission, Oliver was fastest in practice, however unhappiness with his brakes saw him qualify eighth.

“In practice things felt good and I was happy heading into qualifying,” said Oliver. “The track conditions were very different and I had a couple of issues carried over from practice, which meant we were eighth. It wasn’t a disaster, but I knew we could have been higher.”

Oliver fought through the field to fifth in Saturday’s Feature Race, putting him fourth on the grid for the sprint. The 2015 Formula Renault 3.5 champion battled hard throughout the 23-lap race to come home third, giving his team, DAMS, their first podium of the F2 era.

This podium and the fifth-placed-finish left Rowland in third postion in the Drivers’ Championship.

“In the first race I climbed to fourth, but the tyres went off slightly towards the end and finished fifth,” said Oliver. “I didn’t have the best of starts on Sunday, but fought back really well and ended up on the podium, which is a great result and I’m happy looking ahead to Barcelona.”

Renault Sport Academy go Racing

Three of the Renault Sport Academy members were out in action this past weekend (April 21-23) at the opening round of the highly-competitive . Jarno Opmeer (MP Motorsport), Max Fewtrell () and Sun Yue Yang (JD Motorsport) all raced at the iconic Autodromo di Monza in what is for Jarno and Max of their rookie season in the category and for Sun his rookie single seater season.

With two races over the weekend, it was an eventful season-opener. Against tough and experienced competition, Max was the RSA top qualifier the split qualifying for the race, with his qualifying session P4 equating to P8 on the grid for Race 1. He was in P6 at the race’s red flag finish, with this translated to P8 after the one lap countback.

Jarno was eighth fastest in his qualifying session, and this meant P16 on the Race 1 grid. Contact from behind dropped him down to 27th then for the following 9 laps till the race’s red-flag finish, Jarno moved back to P18 – overtaking on average one car per lap. Sun was 14th in his qualifying session, P28 on the grid, and had moved up to 23rd when he made contact with another car ending his race.

For Race 2, Jarno was the top RSA qualifier with P5 in his group meaning P9 on the grid, ahead of Max (P8 in session, P15 on grid) and Sun (P14 in session, P27 on grid). Jarno’s good work was all undone, with places lost off the line, then at the safety car restart before a spin meant he crossed the line in 21st. Max meanwhile was able fightback up to a top ten finish, taking his second eighth of the weekend. Sun was able to finish P16.

Mia Sharizman, Director, Renault Sport Academy:

“ Monza was a tough venue for Max, Jarno and Sun to make their Formula Renault Eurocup debuts as it’s a venue which really rewards experience as the art of slipstreaming is used here more than seen in venues. Although the weekend was challenging, we’ve seen some strong potential. The next round at Silverstone should offer good scope for strong results as all our drivers have tested previously.”

Sergey to visit moscow factory

Prior to his FP1 outing in Sochi, Sergey Sirotkin will visit Renault’s Volgogradskiy factory on Tuesday. The facility, located in the south east of Moscow, houses over 3000 employees, producing over 160,000 vehicles, made up of the Logan, Sandero, Duster, Fluence, Kaptur and Mégane models.

R.S. 2027 Aided by 40 years of experience in Formula 1, Renault has outlined a vision of what racing’s premier series might look like in 2027 with the R.S. 2027. Unveiled at the Shanghai Motor Show on April 19, the R.S. 2027 includes a number of key features:

A transparent cockpit and a transparent helmet that allow the drivers to be seen in the heat of the action to enable a more human- centric championship with drivers at the heart of the sport.

Active LED lighting incorporated into the wheels and moving aerodynamic parts such as the car’s active wings to enable a more spectacular show.

An autonomous mode that can be activated in the case of an accident, along with an ultra-resistant polycarbonate cockpit canopy to protect against impact to enable safer racing.

Ultra-high-performance from Groupe Renault’s expertise in the realms of four-wheel drive, four-wheel steering and very high-energy density batteries.

An even more environmentally-respectful form of Formula 1, with the fuel tank capacity halved in the space of 10 years, plus a full-electric mode for use in the pit lane.

Cyril Abiteboul, Managing Director, Renault Sport Racing:

“ One role of Renault Sport Racing is to anticipate the future of Formula 1 so that it draws a maximum number of fans in an environment consistent with Groupe Renault’s objectives. We look forward to generating inspired conversations with the racing community, fans and enthusiasts through this concept that highlights our ideas and desires.” track notes

track notes sOCHI Sochi Autodrom has some very street-course aspects like the close walls and the numerous 90° turns, but its long straight, super-smooth surface and that long turn three mark it out as something different. Turn three puts a lot of energy through the tyres but the rest of the layout isn’t too demanding on the rubber. Don’t expect too many pit stops, but the close walls can mean safety car appearances.

track STATS

3 123 2.5 7 297 0.9 T1 15:00 race START 4 120 2.0 SECTOR 3 T1 T11 3 94 2.2 309.745 DRS T1 race distance (KM) T1 T1 T1 5.848 4 156 2.9 T T1 circuit length (KM) T T T1 8 296 2.1 T T DRS T1 53 SECTOR 2 number of laps SECTOR 1 T T 3 117 2.4 1:39.094s Lap Record (, 2016)

T 3 141 3.1

3 128 2.7

T01 T10 FUEL EFFECT

Start/finish straight and approach to T2 is the fastest Exit from T10 to entry to T13 is second significant wide point on the circuit, with speeds over 320kph possible open throttle area of circuit with 900m in 12secs. with DRS after 15secs full throttle. T13 T02 Correct line into T13 with heavy braking after flat out 0.40 Reasonable braking for T2 which could get crowded on T11-T12 sequence will be a challenge. SEC/10KG first lap. Decent run off here means good overtaking 0.40 opportunities. T14 SEC/10KG

Slowest corner, cars slowing to almost 80kph. T03 (20160.40 average 0.33sec10kg) SEC/10KG Long T3 will punish an understeering car and make T17 demands on front right tyre. (2016 average 0.33sec10kg) Very tight entry to pit lane to catch the unwary. 0.40 FUEL CONSUMPTIONSEC/10KG T08 (2016 average 0.33sec10kg)

A rapid sequence of significant braking demands and traction events through this section. Circuit has (2016 average1.98 0.33sec10kg) reasonable braking demands, especially T4-T10 then kg/lap T13-T18. 1.98 kg/lap

(20161.98 average 1.6kglap) kg/lap (20161.98 average 1.6kglap) DOWNFORCE kg/lap (2016 average 1.6kglap) FULL THROTTLE (2016 average62 1.6kglap) % of lap 62 % of lap

(2016 average62 0.3 of lap) % of lap (2016 average62 0.3 of lap) % of lap (2016 average 0.3 of lap)

(2016 average15.1 0.3 of lap) % of lap BRAKE WEAR braking15.1 % of lap

POWER UNIT (2016 average15.1 17. of lap) % of lap Sochi may resemble a street track in look but, with two With fuel consumption high, the focus is to recover as much (2016 average15.1 17. of lap) long straights and one high speed turn top speed (without energy as possible under braking. Of the 18 corners, nine are % of lap DRS) will be around 300kph (c320kph with DRS), while the large stops so the MGU-K should be able to recover enough (2016 average 17. of lap) average speed is over 200kph. energy to balance out the ICE’s fuel consumption.

Approximately 62% of the lap is spent at wide open Sector two is very point-squirt, with right-angled turns that (2016 average 17. of lap) throttle, well above the ‘traditional’ street average. give the MGU-K plenty of chance to recover energy. Turns 2 and 4 are the hardest stops and the car speed drops to The lap opens with a short burst of wide open throttle. 120kph, with each braking event around 2.0 seconds. The pit straight blends into Turn 2, giving a total full throttle time of 15 seconds. There is only one other The radial Turn 3 that rounds the Olympic arena is taken at sustained period of wide open throttle around the lap, the full throttle. This sustained throttle use will give the MGU-H curve from Turn 10 to 13 at the back of the track. This is a steady stream of exhaust from which it can recover the around 950m long and 13secs duration. lost heat energy.

tyres

Pirelli brings the same selection of tyres as seen in the season-opening Australian Grand Prix to Russia where there will be the second appearance of the Ultrasoft compound this year.

HIGH

low

tyre wear ULTRASOFT SUPERSOFT SOFT

The Beluga of the range, The Beloe Zoloto of The Russian Standard an extremely soft the tyre allocation, the Premium of Pirelli’s tyre tyre which echoes the Supersoft is unique and range, the Soft compound, characteristics of Beluga easily recognisable, like Russian Standard vodka, which ‘clings capable of both high Premium vodka, is known to your throat like oil’. performance and for its popularity at The Ultrasoft clings to reasonable durability. numerous locations and its the road with tenacity, Beloe Zoloto vodka has a neutral character. but can soon tire of its vivid character thanks to exertions. the inclusion of ginseng root essence in its makeup.