Daniel Ricciardo: I want to be kicking arse!

Ricciardo made his sensational F1 return in Hungary with AlphaTauri, after parting ways with McLaren at the end of 2022. The Red Bull reserve driver had impressed in tyre tests and simulator work, and replaced the struggling Nyck De Vries in their sister team following the British Grand Prix.

After beating his teammate in a solid debut performance at the Hungaroring, Ricciardo was unable to do the same in Spa as Yuki Tsuonda scored a point in Sunday’s race.

As the first half of the season came to a close Ricciardo assessed his weekend that saw him finish 10th in the Sprint Race and 16th in the Grand Prix: “It’s just tough when you, in a race, when you’re not making progress. That’s where you are, and you try a few things, and when you try, it doesn’t work and you lock up or you have a moment.

“So, kind of just feel ‘alright, today’s maybe not the day’. 

Ricciardo was unfortunate to find himself in DRS trains during the Grand Prix, as several drivers up and down the grid struggled to make progress. He kept a positive outlook on the events of the past two weeks, as he seeks to find some form in after the summer break: “I think it’s… I don’t know… Nine days ago, I hadn’t driven this car, so when I put everything into perspective, I think we’re okay.

“And from what I understand, I think the few laps we got towards the end in clear air, we actually were on a decent pace, so it’s probably not all that bad.

“But yeah, now that I’m back in the sport, I’ve got a taste - I want to make sure that I’m kicking arse.”