Daniel Ricciardo Doesn’t Want ‘Any Friction’ at McLaren Over F1 Team Orders

No matter how much fans and drivers alike hate them, team orders are a regular occurrence in F1. Daniel Ricciardo first experienced this at Imola when his team ordered him to let Lando Norris pass him. And even though he is competitive, he did not have a problem with said order as his years of experience have given him some life lessons.

The Woking-based squad’s gamble paid off in letting Norris pass Ricciardo. The 21-year-old brought home P3 for the team, their first podium finish of the season at the Emilia GP.

Ricciardo finished sixth in his second outing with the team and hopes to improve on his form and bring results that are expected of him in his eleventh season in the sport.

Daniel Ricciardo doesn’t want to create tension in the team so early in the season

In an interview with EFTMOnline, talking about team orders and the competition between him and Lando, Ricciardo said, “Yeah, its like of course the competitor in me is like I want to stay in front. But maybe just maturity and experience, now I acknowledge that I basically wasn’t quick enough.

“And I think I am my biggest critic, so in my head, I am like you know if I was quick enough, I would have pulled away, not been in that position. It’s not like. The team was holding me back so that Lando could have that position if you know what I mean.”

It was all on me. obviously, I am not up to speed yet as much as I want, so yeah take that one on the chin and figure out a away to be better. As opposed to jump up and down, I certainly don’t want to create any friction in the team in race two that’s for sure,” Ricciardo explained.

Andreas Seidl feels that Ricciardo just needs more time to get results

While Norris has hit the ground running this season, McLaren‘s new recruit hasn’t fully understood the car yet. Therefore, Andreas Seidl, their team boss, believes that Ricciardo just needs to be patient to get to where he wants.

Speaking after the Emilia GP, Seidl said, “We know it is not just straightforward to jump from one car into another one, and only have one and half days of testing. That takes time, It is not a surprise.”

“It is part of the process of integrating a new driver, and with the experience Daniel has, in the experience we have within the team, it is just a matter of a few more race weekends before Daniel is fully comfortable in our car,” Seidl concluded.

The next round takes us to Portugal. The Honey Badger will be looking to redeem himself and will aim for a better result. Can the Australian get in sync with the car and get a potential podium? Let us know in the comments below.

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