Renault driver Academy director Mia Sharizman is targeting at least one junior on the Formula 1 grid for 2021.
The French manufacturer has a long history of helping youngsters make their way up the motorsport ladder but Lucas Di Grassi in 2010 and Romain Grosjean in 2009 were the last to reach F1.
Renault’s top young driver currently is Chinese talent Guanyu Zhou, who finished seventh in F2 in his rookie year in 2019, while Christian Lundgaard is expected to join him in the series for 2020.
And looking ahead to next year, Sharizman believes those and others, like Max Fewtrell and Ye Yifei in F3, can make a bigger impact.
“It’s clear winning championships as a rookie is becoming more difficult and it means we’re in a great position for our drivers to be competing for titles in 2020,” he said via Motorsport Week.
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“The target has always been to have an academy driver in a position to be in the Formula 1 race seat by 2021, so there’s a lot of hard work ahead. We’re confident this can be achieved.
“We can call next season the ‘attack’ year for the Academy. We aim to win championships and we are also targeting building a reputation for our programme, so the best young talent out there wants to be with Renault.
“I’m very much looking forward to seeing how next season pans out; it’s an exciting time.”
This year though did see the Renault Academy take a hit when another young star, Anthoine Hubert, was killed in a horrific crash at Spa-Francorchamps.
And Sharizman praised how the other members responded to the tragedy.
“I’m exceptionally proud of how the boys conducted themselves through a difficult period in September when we lost our friend Anthoine,” said the Malaysian.
“They all race with him in their minds and will undoubtedly continue to do him proud. Anthoine was a very quick driver but that came through his hard work and dedication.
“Most of all, he was a true role model, not only for the Academy Drivers but for everyone involved in the team and the sport. His legacy will live on.”