During the qualifying session, Ricciardo started off doing well, but he got a penalty for going outside the track limits. This made him drop down to 18th place, even though he could have made it to the next round.
Even without the penalty, he couldn’t go as fast as his teammate Tsunoda, who ended up qualifying in eighth place. Ricciardo admitted he was confused about why he couldn’t match Tsunoda’s speed.
He said, “The lap itself I was happy with. From my side, I felt like I got everything out of it. And then when I saw it still wasn’t good enough, let’s say, compared to Yuki. I’m still a bit puzzled because I know what those laps normally mean.”
Ricciardo explained that he made a mistake at Turn 4 during his lap, but he forgot about it as he continued driving. It took him a while to realize what happened.
Despite this, Ricciardo said he felt good about his car in Melbourne. He felt confident about braking and balance, unlike when he was driving for McLaren. However, he noticed that there were some corners where he couldn’t go as fast as he wanted to.
He also mentioned that the team made some changes to his car after the last race in Jeddah to address his concerns. Although it seemed better, Ricciardo still had some doubts because he felt like the car wasn’t performing as well as it should.
Also read: Daniel Ricciardo Talks Racing, Reflection, And Goals For The 2024 Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix