Riccardo: I was hoping the pace would be faster

In Austria, Daniel Ricciardo started 11th and finished ninth and scored a few points, and while this could be considered a more or less normal result, Australian driver McLaren is not too happy.

Daniel Riccardo: “Of course I’m happy that I was able to move forward and earn a few points, but I hoped the pace would be even higher. On Saturday the impressions of the car were better in several ways at the same time, so during the Grand Prix I couldn’t get what I wanted out of it.

Talking about the first segment of the race, in the very first corner after the start I locked the wheels, which I didn’t even notice, but a pretty big bald spot formed on one of the tires, and this caused that I have serious difficulties, especially in all the right turns.

It’s a shame, of course, because in the first lap I gained a few positions back, but then I didn’t have enough pace. To be honest, even when I got a new set of tires the picture improved a bit, but the car was still not able to get the speed I was hoping for.

In general, the results of the race can be called normal, but nothing more. This weekend we were not fast enough, that became clear from the very first lap of the first practice, but we still managed to minimize losses and earn points.

Besides, I wouldn’t say this circuit doesn’t suit us, because in the last two years Lando Norris has climbed the podium here and for McLaren it was quite suitable. But the next race will be at Paul Ricard, while the French circuit has completely different characteristics. Last year we showed a good flying pace there, although the situation cannot be compared with this season.

But let’s hope that after the Austrian weekend, when we performed less well than we would like, our business will get better, although we have been able to work more or less normally here too.