Renault won’t “say no” to the possibility of Sebastian Vettel joining in 2021, potentially allowing Daniel Ricciardo to go the other way.
Both drivers are out of contract at the end of this year and while the French manufacturer admits they might have trouble persuading the Australian to stay, Vettel also hasn’t ruled out leaving Ferrari.
Recently, it has been suggested that McLaren could be a possible destination for the four-time world champion due to his previous links with current Formula 1 team boss there Andreas Seidl.
However, his Renault counterpart Cyril Abiteboul has also acknowledged his past with Vettel.
“I don’t want to say no, as he is a great driver, and a great champion,” he said on whether Seb was an option via France’s Canal Plus.
“We worked together on the engine side [at Red Bull Racing] and we won together.”
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At the same time, however, the Frenchman does admit Renault is also keen to promote from within should they need a new driver.
“I rather aspire to work with tomorrow’s drivers than yesterday’s. It really is very difficult to sum it up like that, so please don’t sum it up like that about Sebastian,” Abiteboul added.
“Still, we also have a driver academy, with drivers who might come out of it in 2021 or 2022.
“We need to keep this in mind, as we created this academy in 2016 with the goal of having a driver graduate to F1 in 2021.
“Now 2021 is coming, we have to acknowledge it. Typically, there’s Christian Lundgaard. He’s an option among others: he’s got his F2 season to do, we’ve got our own season to do with Daniel.”
Then there’s also the option of Ricciardo himself simply staying on alongside Esteban Ocon, but that depends on if Renault can prove their potential.
“We’ve got to retain him based on good foundations, shared foundations,” the team boss explained.
“The project is what matters. I’m answering the question without really answering it, but I think we need to wait and see the first races.
“Have we made a step forward? Are we recovering a little more confidence compared to last year? Is he still integrating better within the team? Then, if we feel like we’ve got a long-term project, why not?
“I think Daniel cares a lot about his move to Renault, which was very criticised by some media – British media – who don’t understand it,” Abiteboul added.
“This idea of building a project on the human, technical and sporting side matters to him. He’s someone who is guided by his emotions and he wants to show he can stick to his decision, as long as it proves to be a good one.”
If Ricciardo did leave, however, Vettel’s seat alongside Charles Leclerc at Ferrari is one that no doubt would be very appealing indeed.