Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo believes he can challenge for a podium position at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix after capturing fourth place on the grid.
Ricciardo maintained his record of always qualifying his team-mate at the Yas Marina Circuit, and in the process moved ahead of Ferrari’s Kimi Räikkönen during his final Q3 run.
Ricciardo is optimistic that he cam emerge among the thick of the action during Sunday’s season-ending race.
“I’m so happy to have jumped Ferrari and the second row is good,” said Ricciardo.
“We thought we could get close to Ferrari but as qualifying went on, it looked like they were too quick.
“During the first run in Q3 we were slow but I knew we could get a lot more out of the car, we just had to figure it out.
“We understood the tyre temperature a little better and then it was a much quicker lap. It hasn’t been the perfect year of Saturdays for me, so it’s nice to finish 2017 with a good one.
“We were pretty solid all weekend, just not quite on the pace of the top three but tomorrow I think we can have a chance for the podium.
“I don’t think the start will be straightforward, it’s the last race of the year and everyone wants to win so there could be some action and hopefully I’m there to be a part of it.”
Max Verstappen, meanwhile, took sixth place, having struggled to unearth the correct car balance on his RB13, and is expecting the trend to continue into Sunday's race.
“We have struggled to find a good set-up all weekend and today was no exception,” he said.
“The changes we have tried did not impact the car how I would have liked and then by the time you get to qualifying it is too late to change anything else.
“Like I said yesterday, I haven’t been able to find a good level of grip here which means I am always fighting with the car and it makes it difficult to drive.
“The conditions for the race should be similar to tonight so I think it will be a hard race from our side but let’s wait and see what we can do.”
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