“It just felt like we were on the old hamster wheel,” Daniel Ricciardo opens up on his trying time at McLaren
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Daniel Ricciardo
Daniel Ricciardo a well-known name in Formula 1 is setting his eyes on a break for the first in his career, since 2011. After serving an amazing career with Red Bull and a very good time with Renault, McLaren was an unanswered question in his career he is turning his eyes on at the end of the 2022 season. Ricciardo opens up on his failure with McLaren after spending two seasons with the team
Since 2017, McLaren has come a long way but the 2022 regulations did hit them on the edge of a collapse. The team have turned the tables to a very good part since the first race. But the one thing that hasn’t changed much since the start of the season is Ricciardo’s poor performance inside the car. McLaren in 2021 struggled a lot with the braking point near the apex, Daniel being a late-braker had a lot to adjust when he first inside the orange car.
2021 could have been better, but the 2022 regulated car didn’t even insure the correct point of braking to the much more experienced drivers like Lando Norris and was not even close to Ricciardo in such terms. “I’m waiting, reacting, and it’s been hard for me to know what I’m going to get by the time I get to the apex. And the times where I do try to put the trust in it and not overcomplicate it, I’ll get to the apex, and be like, how the f**k’s that happened? Why am I here? Why is my trajectory that?” explained Ricciardo.
Daniel Ricciardo on a brutal defeat to Lando Norris in the last two seasons
Daniel Ricciardo’s move to McLaren was one made in the heavens, the fans thought. Pairing an experienced driver with young blood of the same calibre and humour could have only brought more marketing in hands of McLaren. People expected Daniel to compete and even beat Lando. This didn’t really turn out well for Ricciardo as Norris dominated his run beside an 8-time race winner.
Daniel being as humble as he could didn’t hold back and accepted his defeat to the young teammate with open hands. “If I say he’s not, then I’m just being a bitter, sore loser. The kid’s good. That’s obviously one element, he can steer. But it’s the only F1 car he’s driven. Obviously, there’s been variations of the McLaren. But he hasn’t driven for another team. So in a way he has got, I’m sure, used to some of the elements of this car,” said Ricciardo.
“But ultimately, he hasn’t been behind the wheel of another car. So obviously, he’s good. And there’s an element of ‘ignorance is bliss,” Ricciardo concluded.
Daniel currently isn’t really performing in the way McLaren and Zak Brown would like, he still has a thing to prove by the end of the season but ultimately the team is losing out to Alpine with really only one driver in the fight, as Ricciardo is 72 points behind Norris.
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Soham Raj Jain
(480 Articles Published)