Renault has possibly identified their Daniel Ricciardo replacement in academy driver Christian Lundgaard.
The 18-year-old Dane debuted in Formula 2 at the end of last year and is set to compete in his first full season in 2020 for ART Grand Prix.
Renault though has made it clear they want to promote one of their own into F1 as soon as possible and Lundgaard is well-placed.
“Our goal in having him at the academy has always been to get him in F1 with us,” Academy director Mia Sharizman told Denmark’s BT.
“Now he has to run Formula 2 first to collect enough points for the superlicense you need to have in Formula 1.”
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Currently, Lundgaard has attained 18 points towards the 40 he needs for the compulsory superlicence, meaning he would have to finish fourth or higher in the F2 championship to be eligible for 2021.
“We believe that with what we have seen from him in Formula 3 and Formula Renault, we believe he will take the step further with us,” Sharizman added.
“We hope so, but the final step into F1 is also about having a really good season in Formula 2.”
Lundgaard isn’t the only Renault junior in F2 with Guanyu Zhou set to compete in his second season this year after an impressive seventh place in 2019 standings.
And with Ricciardo’s contract expiring after this year, there is a tantalising prize on offer if the Australian decides not to renew.