RENAULT drivers Nico Hulkenberg and Carlos Sainz declared themselves satisfied with a double points-scoring finish in the opening race of the Formula 1 season.

The Enstone-based team showed encouraging pace during a difficult two weeks of testing in Barcelona due to inclement weather.

Renault headed to Australia admitting there was still work to do.

But Hulkenberg and Sainz finished seventh and tenth respectively in Melbourne to give the team a good platform to build on.

The former, who qualified seventh, always looked certain to score points, and was pleased with the result after he also benefited from the double retirement of the Haas cars.

Hulkenberg said: “We should be pretty happy.

“The pace of the car was strong and competitive, but we know we still have a lot of work to do.

“I’m happy with how the weekend progressed, Friday wasn’t great for me, but we turned it into a decent result and a satisfying Sunday.

“We got lucky with retirements, but also unlucky with the safety car.

“But that’s racing and taking six points home is a just reward for the team’s hard work.”

Sainz started ninth and complained of feeling nauseous due to a problem with the pump to his water bottle.

But the Spaniard was content to deliver a top-ten finish in the first race.

He said: “It’s a positive start for the team and I’m very happy with the performance of the car.

“It’s a good job to take home a strong haul of points and we have something to build on ahead of Bahrain.

“Personally, I struggled a bit out there as I had a drinks bottle issue, the result of which was making me feel pretty unwell.

“The first stint was also a bit difficult with too much oversteer on the car, especially as there was a lot of wind out there.

“We keep learning and we’ll be putting the work in ahead of Bahrain.”

The next race is on April 8.