Daniel Ricciardo cut a bewildered figure after the Faenza-based RB Formula 1 endured a dismal Spanish Grand Prix last weekend, admitting the poor results were “really strange.”
RB brought a heavily revised F1 challenger to Barcelona and had to play down any notion that these would grant it a performance edge over rivals Aston Martin in the front of the midfield.
However, from practice, it became apparent there was something amiss with the RB F1 car with both Ricciardo and team-mate Yuki Tsunoda dropping out of Q1 in qualifying (17th and 18th respectively).
Ricciardo was able to improve to 15th in the race, but it was by no means a positive result and the Australian was confused given he was comfortable behind the wheel.
“It was a really, really strange weekend for us to have dropped off so much,” Ricciardo said post-race on Sunday (via Autosport).
“I didn’t have a bad feeling in qualifying. In the debrief Yuki [Tsunoda] and myself both felt we did good laps, we felt like the balance wasn’t bad.
“I think simply lacked the load and we probably don’t really get everything out of the new package.
“Honestly I felt good in the race. I was happy with what I got out of it, but 15th is not something that we can be happy about.
“I’ve got plenty of notes and feedback from the race. [In] the next 48-72 hours [there are] lots of things to look at.”
Barcelona marked the start of a Formula 1 triple header with the Red Bull Ring and Silverstone, meaning there’s a time incentive to fix RB’s newfound issues.
An easy solution would be to revert back to the car RB had before, one that saw the team regularly challenging for Q3 appearances and points finishes, but Ricciardo believes it is too early to take such drastic action.
“I think that temptation probably only exists in maybe in 72 hours,” he said.
“If we’re still unsure or there’s no clear answer then maybe we say: ‘Okay. do we just for the time being go back?’
“But right now I’m not there yet to resort to that. Once we put everything on the table, if we’re still like that, then that probably becomes a question.”
Team Principal Laurent Mekies is on Ricciardo’s wavelength, agreeing that it was “a poor weekend” for RB.
“Although the gaps were very small, we’re not going to make excuses for the fact we just weren’t competitive,” he said.
Mekies is focussed on looking ahead and the team working its way out of its newfound struggle.
“Looking at the positives, we did a lot of tests across both cars to acquire as much data as possible,” he said.
“Now, our whole group faces a stern test to try and make some progress in the very few days available until we are back on track at the Red Bull Ring.
“It’s a very long season, so there are bound to be some tough weekends.
“We just have to put this one behind us, we must not get downhearted but instead, look ahead and focus on fighting back immediately in a few days’ time in Austria.”
