Renault relying on smart work to shine

On the back of podium finishes in Australia and Malaysia, Renault appears to have made good progress from last season - and its R31 has mixed it in the fight at the front of both events.

And although Renault's budget is no match for teams like Red Bull Racing and McLaren, he still thinks the outfit can make up for its financial handicap in other ways.

"We do not have the same means and resources as McLaren and Red Bull, but we have to make the most of it," he told AUTOSPORT. "I think we can compensate by having this good bunch of people correctly led and working well."

Boullier thinks it vital his team keeps pushing to improve its car if it is going to grab further podium finishes in 2011.

"We are happy to have achieved these podiums," he said. "But obviously we had a bit of luck to get the one in Malaysia, so that means we have to be realistic.

"We have to work a lot to close down on the first two teams, but definitely we want to put Ferrari out of reach if we can. It is a just reward for the team effort, the work, the new way we manage things together.

"But we need to keep pushing as the target is not to stay where we are. We have to keep feeding the ambition."

Renault is set to introduce more updates to its R31 for this weekend's Chinese Grand Prix - having only fitted half of a big development package for the race in Malaysia.