Renault advisor Alain Prost believes the company will reap the rewards of investing heavily in Daniel Ricciardo from 2019.
At the start of the summer break, the Australian shocked the Formula 1 grid by announcing his exit from Red Bull to join the French manufacturer next season.
One of the main attractions to Renault’s advance, some believe, is an increase in his salary compared to that he earns with the Milton Keynes-based squad, but the four-time F1 champion doesn’t see that as a bad thing.
“Daniel is more expensive than other drivers,” Prost told The Guardian newspaper. “When you need that to help the team we did it. Money is not a problem but it has to be justified.
“We have two top drivers, maybe one of the best lineups in F1 today.
“It shows everybody outside and inside that we want to do the best, the right choices at the right moment but we are not going to spend money unless we know that it is worth it. Mercedes and Ferrari may have a different philosophy.”
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Another question many have over Ricciardo’s decision is why he would leave a race-winning team like Red Bull to join a squad which hasn’t won since it was Lotus in 2013 and currently sits in the midfield.
The 29-year-old isn’t afraid to admit success will take time, however.
“I think it’s realistic to think a podium ‘shoey’ could come in 2020,” he told Sky Sports.
“I don’t want to count off a podium next year but I think realistically it has to come under some circumstances, if it’s a bit of a crazy race like Baku 2016 or something.
“I think it’s going to take another 12 months to be a podium contender but that’s the trajectory they’re on.”
The ‘Honey Badger’ also believes he will not be missing out on much by not being with Red Bull next season.
“I really see it hard at the moment for anyone to fight for a title other than Ferrari and Mercedes in the next 12 months,” he claimed.
“Obviously Red Bull are an unknown now with Honda, but still the odds are with Ferrari and Mercedes.
“I kind of feel like 2019 is going to be a building year, regardless of where I was going to be, so we’ll try and do what we can next year but attack in 2020.”