Daniel Ricciardo kicked off Renault's two-day test at the Red Bull Ring as the team steps up its preparations foꩲr Formula 1’s season-opener in Austria next month. 

Ricciardo completed 115 laps of the Spielberg venue driving a two-year-old 2018-spec RS1🎶8 on Tuesday, with his new Renault teammate Esteban Ocon set to takeover running on Wednesday. 

The French manufact🔯urer is the latest team to have conducted some track testing prior to the start of ♉the upcoming campaign, following a similar test carried out by Mercedes last week. 

Mercedes was the first F1 team to return to track action when it undertook a t💝wo-day private test at Silverstone, marking the first time since the end of pre-season testing in B🧔arcelona in February that F1 machinery has run in anger amid the COVID-19 pandemic. 

By opting to use its 2018 challenger, Renault can conduct as much mileage as it desires, with two-year-old cars not bound to F1🧔’s tight restriction😼s on running current machinery outside of the official test sessions. 

The test will also provide Renault with the opportunity to familiari𒉰se itself with F1’s strict new hygiene protocols and social distancing measures ahead of the season resumption. 

Renault has not been abl🥃e to test in either the UK or France due to both countries enforcing a 14-day mandatory quarantine on international arrivals, making Austria the most obvious choice. 

AlphaTauri will also visit the Red Bull Ring later this month for a filmimg day, while Racing Point will commence a shake down of🌠 its 2020 RP20 F1 car at Silverstone on Wednesday. 

Ferrari is also expected to undertake a test before the season be🐼gins, though a date or location is yet to be confirmꦇed.