Aussie’s Renault engine woe deepens

FOUR races into the Formula One season, Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo has already used up three of his four allocated engines and the pressure is increasing on manufacturer Renault.

Ricciardo’s engine spectacularly blew moments before the end of Sunday’s Bahrain Grand Prix, but the Australian driver had enough momentum to roll across the line in sixth place. Red Bull’s team principal Christian Horner tried to see the funny side, comparing Ricciardo’s engine blowing with the fireworks that greeted the race winner Lewis Ham- ilton ( pictured) as he crossed the moments earlier.

“All the fireworks went off and the engine felt like it needed to join in,” Horner said.

“But that’s three out of four, so he will be on engine four for the next race in Barcelona.”

Horner hopes that negotiations for a fifth allocated engine will be approved in coming weeks, although at this rate Ricciardo might need more than 10 to get through the season without incurring penalty points.

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The latest setback for Red Bull placed the spotlight firmly on Renault after Ricciardo’s teammate Daniil Kvyat and Max Verstappen – who drives for Toro Rosso, which uses the same supplier – retired at the previous race in China with engine failures.

Red Bull is in fourth place in the constructors’ championship – a far cry from the days when Red Bull swept the drivers’ and constructors’ championships from 2010- 13 with Sebastian Vettel clinching four straight F1 titles.