Renault Sport racing director Frederic Vasseur says the Formula 1 team’s race pace is not far off rivals Williams.
Jolyon Palmer and Kevin Magnussen finished 11th and 12th for Renault at the 2016 season opener in Australia. Palmer failed to start in Bahrain and Magnussen recovered from a pitlane start to finish just outside the points.
Ahead of round three of the season in China, Vasseur says the team is where it expected to be and is close to finishing in the top 10.
"We are generally where we expected to be, but equally some way short of where we all want to be," he explained.
"We know it’s a long term project, but that doesn’t mean we will sit back. I want everyone fighting as hard for the position in front whether it’s P10 or P1.
"That’s how we’ll regain the success we want. In terms of race pace there are positive signs; we’re not so far from Williams and we’re not so far from finishing with points."
When asked about the next targets for the Enstone-based outfit, he added: “We have finished both races so far as the first car outside of the points so inside the points is where we need to be.
"For this we don’t only need to add performance to the car, we need to ensure our weekends are mistake-free in every aspect."
