With New Year celebrations still a recent memory, the Renault Sport Racing crews and their partners have returned to the track to carry on the development of the new Formula Renault Eurocup.

Following the first public running with Max Fewtrell, Anthoine Hubert took over at the Autodromo Vallelunga Piero Taruffi for two days of testing.

2018 GP3 Series Champion, Anthoine Hubert covered more than 800 kilometres on the Italian track known for its technical nature without any issue. The former Formula Renault Eurocup title contender lowered the track record for the category by more than a second despite the alternating dry and wet conditions.

Underlining the massive potential of the car powered by the 270 horsepower 1.8l turbo engine derived from the Renault Mégane R.S., the Frenchman used his F3 and GP3 experience to make the Formula Renault the ideal step between the entry-level series and the FIA International F3 championship.

In the upcoming weeks, Renault Sport Racing and its technical partners will fine-tune the final details before delivering a first chassis and the first engines to each team by the end of January.

New drivers announced

With a mix of highly competitive returnees and ambitious newcomers, the field continues to expand with just over three months to go before the opening race of the season.

After signing Victor Martins, MP Motorsport will have another of last year’s top rookies, Lorenzo Colombo, in its ranks. Both should figure among the main title contenders, as will Oscar Piastri (R-ace GP).

Meanwhile, 2018 French F4 runner-up Ugo de Wilde from Belgium will take over from the Italian at JD Motorsport. India’s Kush Maini was recently confirmed by the M2 Compétition squad, which is also a newcomer to the Formula Renault Eurocup.

Quote

Anthoine Hubert: "It was nice to be back in a Formula Renault car. It brought back some great memories, but this new car is a massive step forward compared to the car I drove in 2014 and 2015! I felt comfortable straight away. It is a good car right off the truck and has a good baseline thanks to the development work that has been done so far. I raced with Hankook rubber during my season in F3 and these tyres are perfectly suited to the car and are tremendously consistent on long runs. The peak performance might be a challenge for engineers and drivers in qualifying! The turbo engine gives a significant power gain while also being very linear. You can have fun without being surprised in wet conditions. There are many changes on the new Formula Renault compared to the previous car, but it will be a great challenge to win with this major massive reshuffling of the cards!"

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