Fisichella upbeat about Renault progress

Giancarlo Fisichella is upbeat about the progress the Renault team made in testing in Bahrain, although the Italian admits the French squad are still behind Ferrari and McLaren

Renault have failed to match the sort of form displayed by Ferrari or McLaren, but Fisichella is pleased with the team's work in Sakhir, where he claims they made a good step forward ahead of the start of the season in Australia.

"Things went pretty well for us this week," said Fisichella. "From the first day on Tuesday to the final day, we made some good progress with the car, and that's a positive sign.

"There was a big step forward with the balance and set-up, and I think we look more competitive now.

"For sure, we are still behind Ferrari in particular, they looked very strong this week. McLaren are a little bit ahead too, and BMW are competitive as well, but I think we have made a good step forward."

Fisichella admits the team, world champions for the past two seasons, are not completely happy with how things are going, but they are pushing hard to rectify the situation.

"The atmosphere is good and the motivation is high. Is everybody happy? No, and we are not satisfied, because you can only feel like that when you are at the front," he added.

"But the team is doing a fantastic job at the moment. You only have to see how hard they worked at the track to repair Heikki's car this week, to know their commitment is 100%. And we have new developments from the factory too, so everybody is pushing hard."

The Italian admits Renault's target for the season-opening race in Melbourne should be finishing on the podium.

"I think we have a good estimate of where everybody is, but until you start running at the race, you never know. I think we have to aim to be on the podium. The reliability of our package is very good at the moment, and that can be a big asset in the opening races.

"The team is hungry, and ready to go. Everybody is looking forward to seeing what we can do."