Fernando Alonso fears Renault may not be as competitive on the streets of Monte Carlo as it was at Istanbul Park.
The Spaniard finished best of the rest behind the top three teams in a comfortable sixth place last weekend in Turkey, confirming the progress the team has made since introducing its heavily revised R28 car at Barcelona.
And it has been tipped to be even more competitive at the next round in Monaco by Ferrari team boss Stefano Domenicali - as the uniquely tight, low downforce layout can often be a car and driver leveller.
But Alonso, winner of the past two Monaco GPs, has sounded a note of caution on that theory, pointing to Renault's current lack of sufficient rear traction as a reason why it might actually fall back.
When asked for his hopes for the race, he replied: "Difficult to say.
"It is a circuit where the driver can really make the difference and spring a surprise.
"On the other hand, you need good traction and that is what we are missing at the moment.
"So we may not be as competitive as we were in Turkey, but let's wait and see.
"In any case I will approach this race with enormous motivation."
While Alonso couldn't match his shock front-row qualifying position from a fortnight ago in Spain, he believes his sixth place in Turkey proves Renault has now moved to the head of the chasing pack.
The former champion says the team should therefore be encouraged by the clear progress it is making.
"It's clear that we have built on the progress we showed in Barcelona and have become the fourth-placed team," he said.
"Although there is still much work to do, the result is encouraging.
"Nobody in the team would have thought that it would be possible to fight at this level three weeks ago and so it is good to be leaving Turkey with some more points."
Source Itv.com/f1
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