Sidepodcast

Renault F1 Sign Vitaly Petrov for 2010

Credit: Alastair Staley / GP2 Series Media Service

Vitaly Petrov in the GP2 paddock.

Russia has its very first Formula 1 racing driver today, as Renault F1 officially confirmed Vitaly Petrov in their second seat for 2010. Petrov will partner Robert Kubica, who had already been announced last year.

Speculation over who would get the drive at Renault had gone into overdrive recently, and the signing was all but confirmed earlier today when Petrov was spotted in the Valencia paddock, wearing Renault team overalls. It has been rumoured that the deal includes substantial financial backing to help Renault cover the sponsorship deficit, left after ING pulled out of the sport in 2009.

Petrov, 25 and hailing from Vyborg in Russia, finished in second place in last year's GP2 championship. He's looking forward to certain aspects of F1:

I'm really looking forward to any wet races and the street circuits. That's because I started my racing career in Russia competing in rally sprints and ice racing so I feel comfortable in slippery conditions. Also, I won my first GP2 race on a wet track in Valencia when I started on slicks on a damp track. But first I need to see what an F1 car feels like in the rain.

He has modest aims for the upcoming season though:

To learn as much as possible from this successful team and from Robert during the year. I'm so proud to be here and want to do the best job I can.

Following the logic that photos of drivers in Valencia with Renault clothing on might be involved with the team, Ho Pin Tung and Jerome D'Ambrosio were spotted in similar outfits and hanging out together in the paddock. Although not confirmed as Renault test drivers, that is most likely as good an announcement as we'll get for now. Ho Pin Tung tested for the team during the Young Driver test in December, and both are managed by new team boss Eric Boullier.

Eric's in Enstone

Credit: Drew Gibson/LAT/Renault

Meet the new boss. Same as the old boss?

Renault announced today that Eric Boullier will be taking over the team principal role, allowing temporary stand-in Bob Bell to return to his design department. I was hoping that Bob Bell might be able to stay on as boss, mostly because he has an awesome name, and also because I like how he handled the ever-so-slightly embarrassing situation when Grosjean imitated Piquet at Singapore.

Nevertheless, the announcement of a new team boss is not a surprise, as Boullier appears to come as a package deal with the new investors, having also been the CEO at Gravity Sport Management, which is also involved with Genii Capital. It's unclear at the moment whether Boullier will be leaving his role at Gravity, or any of his other interests. Eric also manages Ho Pin Tung and Jérôme D'Ambrosio, and we criticised Flavio for being a manager and a team boss at the same time. Will Eric do the same? He has already made the effort to dispel any concerns that Kubica's teammate will get a helping hand from him:

"The second driver will have to be able to score points and challenge Robert Kubica. So in fact, it might be a Gravity driver or not, but I can guarantee that it will be even more difficult for a Gravity driver to be selected as they really will have to prove their worth to be chosen as Renault’s second driver."

The timing of the announcement is also not particularly out of the blue. No matter what verdict came from the French courts today, the Renault team wanted to distract from the bad headlines of last year with something fresh and new. Particularly now that Flavio has been unbanned, the announcement sends a signal that he is not about to rejoin the team.

So, who is the Eric man, and what can he do for Renault? A quick perusal of the web gives us some more of his history. His LinkedIn profile shows that he has only been at Gravity for a few months, whilst before that he was Technical Director at DAMS for almost seven years. He certainly has staying power. He's also been involved with Team France for A1 GP, who have never finished lower than fourth in the championship. He seems to have the credentials as well.

I am fond of younger team principals, as it always seems to bring some enthusiasm and fun to the sport. I've spoken many times about Christian Horner and how he brightened up the paddock when he first arrived. He and Eric are the same age, so perhaps it is Mr Boullier's turn to do the same. He's on Twitter for a start. Well, one tweet is more than Flavio ever did.

Comparisons to Flavio are actually quite tricky, because Eric comes from the engineering side of things. He is a team principal that comes from the Ross Brawn school of thought, rather than a hands off Flavio approach. How that will see him fare remains to be seen, of course. Although he has only had one day in the public eye so far, Eric has given a good first impression. Asked to describe his approach in three words, he said:

Humility, rigorous and openness. For me, the racing is the most important thing above all.

That's what we like to hear. Let's see if he can live up to his own words.

Who Are They, Anyway - Renault Young Drivers

It's time to look at our fourth team, in this series of posts examining the young drivers expected to test in Jerez next week. Most of them are names we haven't heard of before, so it seems prudent to do a little bit of background investigation and find out who they are, and why they are getting a golden opportunity. This time, it's Renault's turn.

Bertrand Baguette

• Age: 23
• Nationality: Belgian
• F1 Experience: None
• Notable Achievements: 4th Formula Renault 2.0 2006, 12th Superleague Formula 2008, 1st World Series by Renault 2009

Baguette's test comes about after his win in the World Series by Renault this year, and he has made steady progress through the Renault formulae throughout his career so far. Bertrand himself says that although he wants to get the fastest lap, for him the experience will be about proving he can analyse testing results and communicate well with the team. It's a strange kind of ambition, but he certainly seems to want to be part of the team.

Bertrand is prepping for his test with a special physical training course and has visited the Renault factory at Enstone for a bull briefing on the testing programme. He also has one of the best names ever, so I am rooting for him.

Bertrand is currently scheduled to test for just the first day in Jerez.

Lucas di Grassi

• Age: 25
• Nationality: Brazilian
• F1 Experience: Honda test driver, Renault test driver
• Notable Achievements: 3rd Formula 3 Euroseries 2005, 2nd, 3rd, 3rd GP2 Series 2007-09

Lucas has been in the test driver role for a while now, often being spotted around the paddock with either Honda or Renault. In his capacity as a GP2 driver, he has been held off the championship for several years in a row, but his time with team Campos have put him squarely in the frame for a rumoured race seat in 2010. Clearly he is regarded highly as one of the upcoming drivers.

At 25, he's got plenty of experience under his belt, so he'll be intent on showing that off next week. He also happens to be delicious.

Lucas is currently scheduled to test for the final two days in Jerez.

Ho-Pin Tung

• Age: 26
• Nationality: Chinese
• F1 Experience: Test with Williams, Test with BMW in 2007
• Notable Achievements: 4th in GP2 2007, 1st in GP2 Asia 2008, 11th Superleague Formula 2009

Ho-Pin Tung isn't a name I have heard of, and he seemed to be a late confirmation by Renault, but he has been linked with BMW in the past and handled duties as a Williams test driver for a short period, so he is a known in the paddock. His two years at GP2 saw only a couple of points finishes, and no podiums, but he did win one event at the last race of the Superleague season.

From the looks of things, Ho-Pin is currently scheduled to share the final two days of the Jerez test with di Grassi.