Daniel Ricciardo is confident he can avoid the same mistakes that almost ended his career at McLaren in his 12-race stint with AlphaTauri.
Ricciardo arrived at McLaren as one of Formula 1’s most highly rated drivers but was mystifyingly incapable of coming to terms with Woking’s cars across two different rule sets. The eight-time race winner’s problem stemmed from the McLaren’s particular demands on corner entry, with its comparatively weak front axle needing to be loaded up on braking in a way that didn’t mesh with his driving style. Efforts to adjust his method behind the wheel generated little joy, and he was released from the team last year, with a year still to run on his contract.
AlphaTauri has known issues with its corner-entry characteristics, leading to speculation Ricciardo could be set for another demoralizing stint in the sport. But the Australian said his mental approach was at least partly to blame for his failed McLaren switch and that a new outlook would help him avoid the same outcome.
“I started probably just falling into a little bit of a trap where I was like, ‘Yeah, this car doesn’t suit me and I need to work around this and this and this,’” he said of his McLaren struggles. “You can probably be your own worst enemy as well. I go back to my first quali with McLaren. I did a great quali, and that was when I kind of didn’t know so much yet.
“So I’m not really thinking, ‘I know the car will have limitations.’ I’m sure it’s not going to feel as good as the [Red Bull] I drove a week ago, but I’ll just work with that.”
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Ricciardo said he had used his half-season off the grid to disconnect from the sport and recapture a blank-slate mindset, which he thinks will stand him in good stead wrangling the last-placed car in the constructors championship.
“I’ve driven the simulator, but [until] last week I hadn’t driven a car in eight months,” he said. “I haven’t really been doing anything driving-wise. I haven’t driven F3s or go-karts. I’ve just been really switching off from that.
“I appreciate the [Red Bull] is very good — it’s the best on the grid at the moment — but I just got in it and I drove. I didn’t really think about anything, I just drove and had fun. As a junior coming up you are pretty ignorant and you don’t know much. You just race cars because it’s what you love doing.
“There’s going to be a lot to learn, and I’m not going to solve everything this weekend, so it’s just really about focusing on using the things I do well. I think that will translate into some more positive outcomes.”
The target for the eight-time race winner is to return to Red Bull Racing in Sergio Perez’s seat by 2025 at the latest, but Ricciardo says he was pushing that objective out of his mind to make the most of his AlphaTauri opportunity to prove he’s back at his best.
“That’s the dream, so to speak, but there is no point in me thinking about that,” he said. “There is going to be a lot of work to do here.
“In terms of expectation, there is none. For me, everything I felt driving the car last week is what I want from racing — to be in the moment, enjoying it and not thinking too far ahead.
“I know the car is going to have some limitations, but I’ve got to do the best with what I’ve got. If it’s something I think I can work with, then that’s all I need to feel good behind the wheel again and use some of my experience to push the team.
“As far as this weekend goes, if you ask me where I want to finish, I couldn’t tell you. I just want to know I put everything into it and got a lap I can be proud of.”