Daniel Ricciardo needs to silence his critics at the Australian GP beating Yuki Tsunoda

Daniel Ricciardo has so far managed a P13 and P16 finish during the ongoing 2024 F1 season.

Daniel Ricciardo needs to silence his critics at the Australian GP beating Yuki Tsunoda

Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda (Via: Imago)

The Visa Cash App RB F1 team has been in the storylines for various reasons this year. From witnessing a major shake-up within the team to coming into the 2024 F1 season with two highly motivated drivers, the team has been on some ride.

The ongoing campaign is only two rounds down. And amidst everything that has happened on the Faenza-based team, its drivers, Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda have found themselves in the limelight for all the wrong reasons.

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The duo had a heated battle at the Bahrain GP, and things escalated further, courtesy of the post-race antics of Tsunoda. The bromance between the drivers is over and they both mean serious business in their pursuit of outperforming the other. Ricciardo and Tsunoda are also potential candidates for a 2025 Red Bull seat.

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The Japanese driver has so far had Ricciardo’s number and because of this, the former eight-time Grand Prix winner has come under immense pressure. Various prominent F1 personalities have made it known that Ricciardo is past his prime.

However, despite the criticism, the 34-year-old is determined to show what he can do! The upcoming Australian GP is the perfect opportunity for the Honey Badger to finally silence his critics but keeping in view his last few tough seasons in the sport, one has to wonder whether he is really up to the task.

Daniel Ricciardo has lost some pace since moving away from Renault at the end of the 2020 season. His two-year run with McLaren was a disaster and while he is adamant that he still has what it takes, his on-track results show otherwise. 2024, in all likelihood, could prove to be the last campaign of Ricciardo in F1.

VCARB is backing Yuki Tsunoda to take the ‘next step’ ahead of Daniel Ricciardo

While Daniel Ricciardo has a point to prove at the Australian Grand Prix, it seems that the VCARB outfit is slowly trying to develop Yuki Tsunoda into a lead driver. The Japanese, overall, had a solid outing around the free-flowing Jeddah Corniche Circuit during the Saudi Arabian race weekend.

Yuki Tsunoda
Yuki Tsunoda (Via: Imago)

The VCARB team principal, Laurent Mekies has spotted immense potential in the 23-year-old.

What we are looking for from Yuki is that he does that next step. The top guys, they make steps. They come and understand something more about the tyres, they will be able to go faster in given situations.
Laurent Mekies said in an interview with F1

Tsunoda has been making his trade with VCARB(AlphaTauri) since 2021. He is a bit of a hot head when he puts down his visor during Grand Prix weekends and this is one aspect, where he really needs to put in some work.

He has always been a fast racing driver, but what has cost him many times, is his ultra-aggressive approach. This is where he can maybe take some pointers from the experienced Daniel Ricciardo. The Australian might have lost out on a big of pace, but he is still a valuable asset to the VCARB F1 team. The Red Bull junior outfit will have several eyes glued on it during the Australian Grand Prix weekend.

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