Daniel Ricciardo believes there's much more to come from Red Bull
Daniel Ricciardo insists that Red Bull is “not too far off” the frontrunning pace in Melbourne, despite the dark blue cars finishing FP2 in fifth and sixth places, a second off Lewis Hamilton.
Ricciardo said that things didn’t come together in the second session but if confident that the team will show its true potential on Saturday.
“We looked pretty strong this morning and then we tried a few things this afternoon but I don’t think they worked in our favor,” said Ricciardo. “I’d like to learn a bit more from this afternoon’s session, and then if we could pull all of that together with the strength of this morning I’ll be happy.
“Mercedes sure is quick but it’s more Lewis at the moment than Valtteri, who looks like he’s more in the group of Ferrari. I think we can be there as well. Pole might be a stretch but I think we can be in that next little group with the right setup and the right lap in quali.”
Ricciardo admits that pole looks to be out of RBR’s reach: “If Lewis does the perfect lap then that’ll be a challenge to take the pole away from him, but we’re not too far off. You certainly feel more traction with the new tires. I thought the times would have been quicker though; this morning I felt a big chunk of grip but I was expecting low twenties.
“There is still time to improve tomorrow. I think the wind changes so that’ll make a quicker lap time, but the traction is nice. It felt awesome to be out on the track this morning, I just felt I was back in my happy place and it was cool to already see so many fans on a Friday. It’s also a circuit I enjoy because it’s a fun layout. I think we can have a very good weekend from here.”
