Renault team principal Vasseur departs

Renault Sport have confirmed that Frederic Vasseur will leave the F1 team with immediate effect. Having joined the team when Renault took over the former Lotus team, Vasseur's departure is a major surprise and hints at political issues within the team.

Renault said that they and Vasseur "remain committed to maintaining the good working relationship they have enjoyed and expect this to take a new form sometime in the future".

While the team reports the departure was "with mutual consent", rumours about trouble at the top of the team surfaces halfway through last year. Back then, Vasseur was moved from his original Racing Director position to become Team Principal while Cyril Abiteboul moved from Renault engine department in Viry, France to Enstone to oversee the transition.

For Renault, the departure is striking, as Vasseur joined the team at its startup, bringing a lot of driver and team management experience with him from his successful career in GP2.

Cryil Abiteboul remains Renault Sport's managing director with Jerome Stoll president.