2018 will mark the final year of Renault’s building phase as they look to become a championship-winning team.

Having purchased the Lotus team at the start of 2016, Renault set about putting foundations into place for a championship quest.

And managing director Cyril Abiteboul says this year’s campaign will mark the last year in that building phase.

“2017 was a year of progression and 2018 has to be the same, another year of progression, another year of construction,” he told Crash.net.

“By the end of the year we want to say the construction phase is over, it was a three-year phase from 2016 to 2018, and now the next phase will be about attacking the top teams.