Ocon: Renault can now fight for third in the championship
Renault’s form at the Belgian Grand Prix has left Esteban Ocon convinced the French car manufacturer is now in the fight for third place in the constructors’ championship this Formula 1 season.


The Frenchman and teammate Daniel Ricciardo helped deliver Renault its best qualifying performance since returning as a works team in Belgium, with the pair going on to finish fourth and fifth in the race.
Based on how strong the Renault was there, with hopes high for Monza this weekend too, Ocon sees a chance of it ending the campaign as best of the rest behind Mercedes and Red Bull.
Currently Renault is sixth in the standings, but is just nine points behind McLaren in third.
Asked if Renault could push itself to the front of the chasing pack for third place overall, Ocon said “Yeah, we can. We can. There's 10 more races to go, so we are only in the beginning of the season, more or less.
“There's a long, long way of course, but it's very nice to see that we are coming into that fight very nicely.
“We need to get consistent at scoring and we don't want to have a second Barcelona for sure. But when there are opportunities like this coming, what's important is to get the points and that's what we've done this weekend.”
Read Also:
Ricciardo says that he "expects" Renault to be bang on the pace again at the Italian Grand Prix.
“I think it can certainly be expected from us, you know, on these low downforce circuits,” he said. “Coming into Monza next week, I think we can expect to be competitive again.
“That would be certainly a pretty strong assumption at least from my side.”
Ocon said that the Belgian GP form had been a huge boost to him in particular, after a sometimes challenging first phase to his F1 return.
“I think it is very, very encouraging,” he said. “To be there with the Red Bull it's nice you know. Very, very nice. We need to do that obviously a lot more consistently.
“We seem to be quick as soon as we're running a little bit on low downforce. Silverstone was the case and in Belgium we were quick again.
“It's a shame there's not two Spa races, obviously, but we'll have a Monza so we should be quick again.”
Related video

Gasly form not prompting Red Bull driver swap thoughts
FIA reveals plan to review F1 superlicence system

Latest news
The inevitable consequence of the Liberty F1 popularity boom
Sell out crowds at Formula 1 races are the norm rather than the exception these days, as grand prix racing is enjoying a massive boom under Liberty Media. But the Spanish Grand Prix highlighted numerous issues some circuits may face as demand for F1 soars
The danger for Red Bull in its Barcelona F1 team orders choice
OPINION: Red Bull walked into a team orders saga on its way to taking a Spanish Grand Prix 1-2 last weekend, where it took the lead of the 2022 Formula 1 world championships for the first time. But its decisions have added an element of risk to later races.
Why Mercedes' Spanish GP gains aren't as grand as they seemed
Mercedes' strong showing in last weekend's Spanish Grand Prix prompted team boss Toto Wolff to say it had halved its deficit to the leaders and its Formula 1 title chances were back on after a rocky start to the 2022 campaign. But a closer inspection of the team's performance suggests its gains aren't as grand as they first appeared
What's next for the Green Red Bull controversy?
From the 'pink Mercedes' to the 'Green Red Bull', the Silverstone-based team has received suspicious glares from up and down the Formula 1 paddock over its car design exploits. But after being cleared by the FIA over its Spanish Grand Prix updates amid a backdrop of cries of foul play, what's next in this saga?
Spanish Grand Prix Driver Ratings 2022
In an unusually hectic Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix, Charles Leclerc was denied a dominant performance by his Ferrari engine letting go which allowed Max Verstappen to pick up the pieces. But numerous flashpoints kept the race twisting and turning throughout, with one perfect score from an emerging contender
How Verstappen overcame his and Red Bull’s errors to win in Spain
Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari engine disaster offered an open goal for Max Verstappen and Red Bull to strike, but the reigning Formula 1 world champion still had to solve multiple errors and profit from a begrudged assist from team-mate Sergio Perez, which created an unexpectedly eventful Spanish Grand Prix
Why Red Bull can win a Spanish GP that looked perfect for Ferrari
Formula 1's return to Spain on Friday ended with Ferrari leading the way from Mercedes, while Red Bull could only manage third fastest overall courtesy of Max Verstappen. But its chances of victory are far from remote with a deeper dig into the times despite Ferrari's strong start...
The key aspects of Porsche and Audi's planned F1 entries
The VW Group’s German superpowers of sportscar racing have all but confirmed they are coming to F1 when the next set of engine rules come into force in 2026. Here's why both manufacturers are all set to take the plunge, and crucially how it might work