F1 »

Piquet must improve - or he will be out

Nelsinho Piquet must up his game and 'start having more good bits than bad bits', Renault have warned – or else the Brazilian will find his time in Formula 1 is fast running out.

The 22-year-old has struggled so far this season – his maiden campaign in the top flight – failing to trouble the points-scorers in the opening five grands prix and rarely getting close to team-mate Fernando Alonso in terms of lap times, trailing the double world champion five-nil in the qualifying stakes.

Piquet has an average starting position of 15th – in stark contrast to Alonso's eighth – and twice has dropped out in the opening phase of the qualifying session. What's more, a litany of spins and errors have spoiled his race performances – with just two finishes to his name, and the best of those eleventh place in Malaysia, three spots and 22 seconds behind Alonso – and now Renault are beginning to ramp up the pressure.

“He needs to start having more good bits than bad bits,” the Régie's sporting manager Steve Nielsen told F1SA, “and he needs to start doing that as soon as he can.

Formula 1 is a business – it's a very cut-throat business – and if people don't deliver, they go the obvious way.”

Despite the threat of the axe hanging over his head should he not up his game – and soon – Piquet remained upbeat about his prospects, comparing his trials and tribulations to those of predecessor Heikki Kovalainen, who was publicly slated by Renault's outspoken managing director Flavio Briatore following a disappointing debut in Australia last year. The Finn took several races to get fully into his stride before dramatically turning his season around in the second half and going on to secure a McLaren-Mercedes seat in 2008.

“Some drivers take a bit more time to learn,” the son of former three-time world champion Nelson Piquet explained to international news agency Reuters, “[and] some get it straight at the beginning. I think it depends on the situation and how comfortable the driver is with the car and the team.

“Heikki had a difficult beginning of the season [in 2007], but he ended up good. I spent one year without racing and the year that I didn't race, testing was cut to a half. The year that Heikki didn't race, he drove absolutely thousands of kilometres in the car so he knew the car from head-to-toe.

“Heikki is doing very well now, so maybe for a driver not to be doing well in the beginning can be something normal and then a driver always improves.”

Unflattering comparisons have also perhaps unfairly been drawn between Piquet and former GP2 Series title rival Lewis Hamilton, who notched up a staggering nine successive rostrum finishes and only narrowly missed out on the drivers' world crown during his own rookie year in the uppermost echelon in 2007.

Paging
Page 1 of 2
1 2  »
Paging

Comments
Comments

Social Networking
Social Networking


Products you might like

    Latest Comments
    Latest Comments
    Report Abuse
    My apologies Simon I assumed that was the part of my post you took offense too. What exactly did I post to cause you to make your accusation about my vision?
    Posted by Mark _ (673 days ago)
    Latest Comments
    Related Images

    Related Images

    Nelson Piquet (BRA) Renault R28, Bahrain F1 Grand Prix, Sakhir, Bahrain, 4-6th, April, 2008
    Nelson Piquet (BRA) Renault R28, Australian F1 Grand Prix, Albert Park, Melbourne, 14-16th, March, 2008
    Nelson Piquet Jnr, Renault, Jerez F1 Test, 7/02/07
    Jan Charouz tests Renault R29 at Silverstone   [pic credit: BPA/Petr Frýba]
    Jan Charouz tests Renault R29 at Silverstone   [pic credit: BPA/Petr Frýba]
    Jan Charouz tests Renault R29 at Silverstone   [pic credit: BPA/Petr Frýba]
    Renault R30 with Lada branding [Pic credit: Renault F1 team]
    Karun Chandhok, Hispania Racing F1 Team, 2010 [pic credit: motioncompany]
    Karun Chandhok, Hispania Racing F1 Team, 2010 [pic credit: motioncompany]
    Karun Chandhok, Hispania Racing F1 Team, 2010 [pic credit: motioncompany]
    Karun Chandhok, Hispania Racing F1 Team, 2010 [pic credit: motioncompany]
    Karun Chandhok, Hispania Racing F1 Team, 2010 [pic credit: motioncompany]
    Karun Chandhok, Hispania Racing F1 Team, 2010 [pic credit: motioncompany]
    1976 F1 World Champion James Hunt
    1976 F1 World Champion James Hunt
    1976 F1 World Champion James Hunt
    1976 F1 World Champion James Hunt
    11.02.2010 Jerez, Spain, Timo Glock (GER), Virgin Racing helmet - Formula 1 Testing, Jerez, Spain
    11.02.2010 Jerez, Spain, Lucas di Grassi (BRA), Virgin Racing helmet - Formula 1 Testing, Jerez, Spain
    11.02.2010 Jerez, Spain, Jenson Button (GBR), McLaren Mercedes, MP4-25 - Formula 1 Testing, Jerez, Spain
    11.02.2010 Jerez, Spain, Timo Glock (GER), Virgin Racing helmet - Formula 1 Testing, Jerez, Spain
    11.02.2010 Jerez, Spain, Lucas di Grassi (BRA), Virgin Racing helmet - Formula 1 Testing, Jerez, Spain
    Related Images
     
    Site Map
    © 1999 - 2010 Crash Media Group
    The total or partial reproduction of text, photographs or illustrations is not permitted in any form.

    Contact Crash.Net  |  Advertise on Crash.Net  |  Our Privacy Policy  |  About Crash.Net  |  Get News Feeds  |  Need a Website?

    Find car reviews on sports cars such as Ferrari, BMW, Porsche and many more.