Daniel Ricciardo says missing out on a potential race victory at the Spanish Grand Prix is still “hard to take”.
The Australian driver led the early stages at Barcelona and was put on a three-stop strategy by Red Bull Racing, while his new team-mate Max Verstappen pitted just twice.
Verstappen went on to win the race, while a late puncture stopped Ricciardo’s podium challenge and he finished fourth, feeling the strategy was the wrong decision.
"Part of me is happy the team is winning again, and everyone is super motivated and confidence is high," Ricciardo explained in an interview with Red Bull.
"That's a positive I'm trying to draw myself to, but from a personal side it was massively frustrating.
"It's a tough one, it's a team sport but you are doing it for yourself as well, it's as individual as it is team, that balance is a tricky one to always try and manage but from a personal side it's still a hard one to take."
Ricciardo says Red Bull hasn’t got the maximum from the 2016 season so far but has been surprised by the team’s performance: "I think the season has been better than expected.
"I've had four fourths from five races, the first two fourths were really good, since then those fourths should have been better.
"I don't feel we've got the most points we could have but in terms of competitiveness we're better than we thought."