A lot at stake this weekend for Renault

Just a week on from the German GP, the Renault F1 Team will hit the track once again this morning for the 13th round of the 2006 F1 world championship. It will be an important race for the team which is leading the drivers’ and constructors’ world championships. After three consecutive Ferrari wins, the aim will be to bounce back and consolidate the lead.

In order to do so, the Renault F1 Team’s engineers have analysed the data from Hockenheim and made some changes on the technical side. The new rear suspension geometry raced in Hockenheim will be taken off the car, and only raced after more track testing. What’s more, one of the tyres selected has been urgently re-manufactured by Michelin this week. The aero package introduced in Germany will remain on the car to help on the tight, twisting Hungaroring.

Renault’s main rivals will clearly be the Ferraris, which scored a one-two finish last weekend. However, the Reds aren’t the only ones out there with a role to play. McLaren and Honda each got one car to the finish ahead of the two Renaults last weekend, which shows that one can never underestimate the opposition in Formula 1.

In the drivers’ championship, Giancarlo Fisichella will be looking to wrestle third position back off Felipe Massa. The Brazilian is leading him by just one point in the championship. As for Jenson Button, he is looking to take sixth: he is just 5 points behind Montoya, who concluded his F1 career two races ago. And Ralf Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello will be fighting hard as well, with just a three-point gap separating the two men.

Finally, it’s worth noting the absence of Jacques Villeneuve. Still shaken after a heavy crash in Germany, he has been replaced for this weekend by the BMW team's Polish test driver Robert Kubica.