Daniel Ricciardo, an Australian driver for the RB Formula 1 team, expressed his confusion regarding the gap between himself and his teammate Yuki Tsunoda at the Australian Grand Prix. Despite achieving his best lap of the year, Ricciardo was disappointed to find that he still couldn’t match Tsunoda’s pace. His fastest lap was disqualified due to exceeding track limits, resulting in an 18th place starting position on the grid. Ricciardo admitted that he had momentarily forgotten about the mistake after completing the lap. He acknowledged that there may have been some track evolution, but there are also areas that need to be examined as he has been struggling thus far.
However, Ricciardo insists that his search for solutions to his lack of speed is not comparable to his difficult time with McLaren before returning to Red Bull. But after overcoming the balance issues he experienced with the VCARB01, Ricciardo is eager to analyze the data and understand the gap to his teammate. When asked if he had mixed feelings because the car had potential that he couldn’t fully utilize, Ricciardo replied, “Yes, and that’s why today, okay, the time got deleted. But the lap itself was definitely the best qualifying lap I’ve done this year, and those laps are usually quite good. Going into Q2, I don’t think there was much more time to gain. You obviously gain a couple of tenths from track evolution, but six, seven-tenths, that’s not possible. In terms of balance and everything, I feel confident with the car. It’s not like McLaren where I was unsure and couldn’t push the car. But yeah, there are some corner speeds where I simply can’t gain enough speed.” Ricciardo further explained his struggles, saying, “I feel like I’m pushing the car to its limits, with all four wheels sliding. It’s a matter of balance, and I believe I’ve reached the car’s full potential. After Saudi, the team made several changes and provided me with new parts to address the issues and concerns. It seemed better, but I’m still not entirely convinced. We’re still struggling more than we usually do with a car that I’m actually quite happy with. It’s not like I’m thinking, ‘Yeah, it’s really struggling here or there.’ It’s actually a pretty enjoyable car to drive. It’s just that the lap time doesn’t reflect that.” While Tsunoda advanced to the pole position shootout and will start eighth, Ricciardo will be starting from the back. When asked about his prospects on home turf tomorrow, he replied, “I don’t know. I haven’t even fully grasped where I’ll be starting from. It’s definitely painful. The only thing I can be optimistic about is the amazing home crowd. I think it’ll probably be a two-stop race due to tire wear, which could provide more opportunities if I can be gentle on the tires. Hopefully, some other drivers will struggle with tire graining and other issues, and we can make our way through the field. But yeah, I’m still a bit preoccupied with the current lap time in this car.”