Kovalainen sure Renault will rebound

"Yes, I am confident of it," Kovalainen said on Renault's website. "The team has won two world titles in two years, they are the best. I haven't got any doubts at all that we can bounce back, and show people the real strength and calibre of this team."

The French squad have endured their worst start to a season since 2002, having scored just nine points after the first three races.

Kovalainen, making his Grand Prix debut this season, has finished in the points once, an eighth place at the Malaysian Grand Prix.

"The start of the season has been a little bit tough for us, to be honest," Kovalainen added. "The car clearly isn't performing how the team had hoped, and personally, my first race was a real disappointment.

"It certainly wasn't the kind of debut I had dreamed about. So that's the negative side of things, but I'm not the kind of person to focus on the downside.

"Since Melbourne, I have worked really hard, I have been on the same pace as my teammate Giancarlo, and I think I have made good progress. I feel like the first three races have given me a good basis to improve from in the next months."

The Renault driver admits the only way to get back to being competitive will be to work extra hard.

"I think it means we have to work even harder than before, in even more detail. There is lots of analysis going on, and I am speaking to the team a lot to give them as much feedback as possible concerning the handling, and trying to improve the situation.

"I have been in constant contact with my engineer, Adam (Carter), and other people in the team during the past few weeks, to talk about testing and about what we can do to make the car more competitive.

"I am enjoying working hard with the team. We know that every detail matters, and can help us improve."