The reason why Daniel Ricciardo is lacking pace
Thursday, 27 May 2021
McLaren are determined to help the Aussie.
Daniel Ricciardo’s debut season with McLaren has been far from plain sailing.
The Aussie F1® driver finished in twelfth place at the Monaco Grand Prix and is currently trailing his teammate Lando Norris by 32 points in the standings.
So why has Ricciardo been struggling for pace, despite his prestigious talent with seven race victories and 31 podiums?
McLaren Team Principal Andreas Seidl has shone a light on this subject.
“In order to drive our car fast at the moment, you need a special driving style which is not natural for Daniel. That’s why it’s not easy for him to get the laps in and extract the performance,” Seidl explained.
“We simply have to keep working together as one team: Stay calm, keep learning, keep analysing and do two things, which is him further adapting to our car, because he sees that the potential is there, which is the positive thing for him to see that and that Lando can pull it off.
"And at the same time, we look at the team side as well to see what we can do to help him on the car side, to get back this natural feeling, which you need to go fast. That’s where we are.
“Overall, it’s important now to simply put this weekend behind us together with him and simply continue our journey in Baku. I think if you look back to the beginning of the season, we have made good steps forward with him,” added the McLaren boss.
“Had a few days to reflect after the Monaco event. It wasn’t the result I’d hoped for, but we learn something from every challenge. Now it’s time to focus on the next one!” 💪
— McLaren (@McLarenF1) May 26, 2021
🔜🇦🇿 @danielricciardo pic.twitter.com/p4ul6cJ4dJ
Ricciardo will take to the track again at Baku on 4-6 June.
It will be fascinating to see whether the Australian and McLaren can make a strong step forward at the street circuit.
