Renault Announce Bell as Gascoyne's Replacement

The Renault team have announced that Bob Bell will replace Mike Gascoyne as their technical director following the exit of the Briton to join the Toyota team.

45-year old Bell, who previously worked as deputy technical director at Renault UK, joined the French squad in 2001.

As deputy technical director, he was primarily responsible for co-ordinating the design and development programmes at the Enstone base, and worked alongside Gascoyne on all technical matters.

"We thank Mike for his excellent work, his contribution to our success so far and wish him well for the future," said managing director Flavio Briatore. "We are delighted to offer Bob Bell the role of Technical Director.

"The entire technical team has done an outstanding job developing our car over the past two years, and we have made impressive progress. Our programme has been built up carefully, putting the right people in place, and I have every confidence that Bob's technical experience and managerial skills will be a major asset for the future."