Renault worried about Haas threat after Ferrari engine upgrade

Renault has admitted they are being forced to watch their backs as Haas look to up the ante in the fight for best of the rest in Formula One. After a strong Austrian Grand Prix, the French team are worried about a repeat performance where Haas took vital points out of them in the constructor standings.

Renault technical director Nick Chester admitted that the team were wary of the threat that Haas could pose them as the American team have shown dramatic improvements since the Austrian Grand Prix where Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen finished fourth and fifth respectively whilst Renault didn't score.

"We know we can’t really. We’re going to have to develop. We’ve got things in the pipeline that are going to hit after shutdown. Maybe when we get to race 15, race 16 we can review it but by then most things will be in process anyway," he told Racefans.net.

It’s just too tight. With only 21 points in it, you know, the Austria result you could wipe that out. We’ve got to keep going, keep pushing and just get pace on the car."

The gap between the top three teams in F1 and the rest seems to be set until the regulation changes in 2021. The fight behind though is as close as it has ever been, with five teams able to beat the others depending on the track and conditions.

The all-important fight for position in the constructor standings has been even closer for the vital prize money the teams receive based on finishing position in the championship.