Renault Formula 1 chief Frederic Vasseur is in no rush to complete the team’s driver line-up for 2017, saying that the recent arrival of Nico Hulkenberg has given him more time to make a decision on the German’s teammate.
Hulkenberg was lured away from Force India for the 2017 season, announcing last week that he had signed to join Renault and aid its revival after its return to F1 as a constructor this year.
Renault is thought to have been chasing a number of drivers under contract elsewhere for 2017, including Williams’ Valtteri Bottas and Toro Rosso’s Carlos Sainz Jr.
However, Renault is still exploring a number of options for its second seat, with Vasseur seeing no reason to rush any decision.
“We are in talks with many drivers,” Vasseur told the official F1 website.
“For sure, that we have secured the situation with Nico buys us time. Now we can postpone the decision for the second cockpit.
“Yes, we do have some young drivers and rookies in the loop, so it is important to see how they are improving.”
Bottas was strongly linked with a move away from Williams for 2017, but reports over the United States Grand Prix weekend suggest that he will now stay on with the British team.
“I also have a good relationship with Valtteri. He drove for me for three or four years in the past,” Vassuer said.
“We won the GP3 championship together. But Valtteri is under contract with Williams.
“That is not the same story as [Hulkenberg] with Force India.”
Magnussen recently admitted that he was getting impatient about his future with Renault, as well as adding that he was “millimeters” away from signing a new contract with the French team.
“His situation has not changed. Millimeters. But if you have the pen millimeters off the paper, what then?”
