Daniel Ricciardo says he and Renault will adopt a “more basic approach” and avoid being “too clever” in a bid to get him more comfortable with its R.S.19.
Ricciardo has encountered a slow start to his Formula 1 career with Renault, accentuated by performance and reliability setbacks on the team’s behalf.
Ricciardo conceded in Bahrain that he is still trying to adapt to a car with less downforce, having moved across from Red Bull, which has had a race-winning package in most years of the hybrid era.
The Australian revealed that he is likely to tweak his approach in the short-term in a bid to get used to Renault’s package, having undertaken in-depth discussions with his engineers after the Bahrain Grand Prix.
“One thing we’ve assessed is maybe we are trying to do too much over the course of a weekend,” he said.
“We maybe established that we are currently trying to do too much. Where I am trying to settle in and also my engineers are trying to work with me.
“Probably all of us are trying to be too clever. I don’t want to say that because you are always trying to find the limits.
“But for now maybe we just need to keep a more basic approach and just do what we can, do it well, and then probably not look for that extra one per cent at the moment.
“There is probably bigger time from just being comfortable and working well together.
“I know that once I start getting really comfortable with the car, that will reflect and that will go on to my engineers and then they will start to have more confidence and this and that.”
Ricciardo nonetheless stressed that his overall style, long-term, will not change, once he gets accustomed to the nuances of the R.S.19.
“Your style will always be a part of you but … the difficult thing was in a way there is so much I could learn and bring from Red Bull,” he said.
“But also, I need to forget a lot of it because it is a different car and it needs to be tamed a bit different.
“In testing and Melbourne I was over driving, but that was my approach in the Red Bull, carrying in the entry speed and the car has a good rear.
“But here it is a different approach for now. I don’t think my style will necessarily change. I still want to be that aggressive driver on the brakes and all that.
“But that will come with a bit of confidence. I probably have not yet had that level of confidence on braking as I had last year. But that will come.”
