Renault has admitted McLaren driver Stoffel Vandoorne is one option they are considering should they need to replace Carlos Sainz for 2019.
Though the French manufacturer is keen to keep the Spaniard beyond this year, his current loan status means should Daniel Ricciardo leave Red Bull at the end of the year, Sainz is the driver many expect to be called up as his replacement.
That means the Enstone team is having to look around to cover the possibility and, despite having failed to meet the hype many had for him alongside Fernando Alonso, the Belgian is still an attractive choice.
“Do not say that Stoffel will join Renault because it is absolutely not the case,” Renault Sport managing director Cyril Abiteboul was quoted by F1i.com.
“But he is a driver that we look at. When I wonder about the possible options, I take Vandoorne into consideration.”
Renault does have some experience with the 26-year-old as he competed in Formula Renault 3.5 before jumping to GP2 and later Super Formula before finally getting his F1 chance at the beginning of 2017.
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And despite some recent speculation over his future at McLaren, which Vandoorne insists is safe, Abiteboul does think the potential is there.
“I think his situation is quite difficult. I don’t know the ins and outs, but sometimes a change of environment allows a driver to get the oxygen to bounce back,” said the Frenchman.
“He was fast, talented, consistent in all of the lower categories and there is no reason for all that to disappear, but when you have Fernando next door it’s complicated, especially in McLaren’s circumstances of recent years.
“He is a high-level driver that we can look at in the future, depending on how our situation evolves,” he concluded.
