Home/F1

Renault driver Daniel Ricciardo opened up on the most frustrating aspect of Formula 1. The honey badger disclosed that a major reason for being successful in F1 came down to being at the right place at the right time. Unfortunately, Ricciardo hasn’t had the distinction of making the right decisions recently.

Daniel Ricciardo reveals his frustrations with F1

Victories and Championships in F1 aren’t extremely hard to come by when there are two factors involved. A good, talented driver, driving for a competitive and strong team. This is easier said than done because it’s hard to predict which driver and team are truly great at any given point of time. However, only a select few have mastered this trick and a good example would be Lewis Hamilton.

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

In Ricciardo’s case, he was at the right team at the wrong time. Back in 2013, Red Bull was what Mercedes is today. A dominant force that looked indomitable. As a result, had the regulations never changed, Daniel Ricciardo would probably be World Champion by now. Unfortunately, Red Bull’s dominance subsiding coincided with Ricciardo’s rise in F1.

Even on the days that Red Bull looked strong, Ricciardo suffered heartbreaking mechanical failures on multiple occasions. Even a driver of Daniel’s temperament could only take so much, forcing the honey badger to try his luck at Renault. Sadly, that too turned out to be a gamble that didn’t pay off.

While driving skills are an excellent barometer for F1 drivers, making the right choices are also prudent. Something Ricciardo’s learned the hard way.

Important decisions lie ahead

“It’s frustrating that the sport is driven quite a lot by being in the right equipment in the right season,” said Ricciardo, speaking to BBC Radio 5 live.

“But it’s what I signed up for. And that in itself is an exciting part of the sport.

“The challenge is to position yourself with the best team at that moment”

“And when rule changes come in, it’s, like, is that still the right team to be with, or are we missing something? Do we need to try to build on what we’ve got here?

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

“It’s kind of like chess a lot of the time.

“I wish it was black and white and everyone had the same”

“and we could go and see who was the best, but that is not how it works.

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

“But I do feel that the best will always find a way to make it to the top.”

The Honey badger has one more chance, possibly his last one, to make things right before its time to say goodbye.