Daniel Ricciardo reveals 'DNA' secret about RB19

Ricciardo op Silverstone — Photo: © LAT Images

F1 News & Gossip

Ricciardo reveals 'DNA' secret about RB19

Cal Gaunt

Wednesday 27 December 2023 10:57

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Daniel Ricciardo has said that the Red Bull RB19 still has the 'DNA' of the car he remembers driving during his initial stint with the team, which made testing the car much easier for him.

Recently dubbed the 'most successful F1 car in history', the RB19's plaudits come fresh on the heels of a remarkable season where Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez clinched a staggering 21 out of 22 race victories in the year 2023.

And Ricciardo, who returned to the Red Bull fold last year as a test and reserve driver before replacing Nyck de Vries at AlphaTauri mid-season, has had his say on the machine that catapulted Verstappen to a third straight world title.

Max Verstappen drove the RB19 to world championship glory in 2023

Daniel Ricciardo has revealed that the RB19 still had 'DNA' from previous iterations of the Red Bull F1 car

Ricciardo: I had faith in the machine

The Australian believes the RB19's characteristics aided him in securing a return to Red Bull after difficult seasons with Renault and McLaren.

"What made the test go really well for me is that, yes, the cars have evolved and changed so much, but there was part of its DNA, which was still what I remembered and still what I really liked in a race car," Ricciardo told Beyond The Grid.

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"The part I love most about the Red Bull car is that I can just drive it the way I want to drive it. It doesn't really explain what's great about the car, but it explains why I love it.

"I just remember getting on the throttle. Once I'd got to like 50 per cent throttle, I had so much faith in just smashing that last 50 per cent and not having to really worry about the car or where it was.

"A fast car is not always the easiest car to drive. As beautiful and awesome as the car is, you've still got to drive it. I look at the season Max had and he's also won races in mixed conditions, in the wet, and the car is amazing, but it’s not doing it for you.

"He's obviously at one with it. But yeah I just loved it. I had fun and it was just good to do it again. I didn't expect the call to be for the week later in Budapest. I thought it would be after the summer break, but once they said it and obviously how I felt after the test, I was like, ‘man, I'm ready. Let’s do it.’"