Symonds wary of changing fortunes
Renault are feeling the pressure of a world championship battle and fear Formula One’s balance of power could shift within two weeks, according to engineering chief Pat Symonds.
Fernando Alonso leads the drivers’ standings by 32 points while the Anglo-French team hold a 23-point advantage in the constructors’ championship.
But Symonds is wary of changing fortunes in Formula One and believes two bad races could turn the tables in both championships.
He said: “I think in Formula One, the pressure is on everybody, all the way through until your position in the championship is fixed.
“This year, we are just over one third of the way through the season, and we have a reasonable lead in the championship but it is far from unassailable.
“There is perhaps a little more conservatism in some of our choices, because we cannot afford to make mistakes.
“But we equally do not have the luxury of thinking too conservatively because just a single non-finish, with our rivals scoring well, will turn things around.
“In a season as long as this, with the number of races we have coming up in the next two months, everything can turn around in the space of a fortnight.
“Even after Canada and the USA, we will not quite have reached the halfway point of the season and that means we need to continue pushing throughout the summer to protect, and extend, our lead.”
