Daniel Ricciardo still 'broken inside' as he seeks Barcelona qualifying redemption

Daniel Ricciardo

Ricciardo still 'broken inside' as he seeks Barcelona qualifying redemption

Ricciardo was left dejected after qualifying in Portugal

Ian Parkes

Wednesday 5 May 2021 13:23

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Daniel Ricciardo has revealed to being 'broken inside' by his qualifying performance in Portugal and is now seeking redemption at this weekend's race in Spain.

Ricciardo endured his worst qualifying since the 2019 Japanese Grand Prix when he was with Renault after failing to get out of Q1 in Portimão with McLaren to line up a wretched 16th on the grid.

The Australian at least recovered on Sunday to finish ninth and score two points, which overcome some of the pain felt the day before, but knowing true absolution will only be achieved by performing better this Saturday ahead of the Spanish GP.

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"Deep down that's why it [qualifying] is so frustrating because you know it doesn't ruin your weekend, but it certainly changes your weekend," said Ricciardo.

"That's why qualifying in this sport, we hold Saturday to such high regard, and when you don't get it right it eats inside you.

"I have a lot of belief in myself and confidence, and when I don't perform to what I believe I'm capable of, it breaks me inside, and obviously, I hate that.

"We don't get these chances all the time. We get 20-something races a year, so we're not able to do this every day. Even waiting a week to get another chance, it hurts."

Ricciardo heads to Barcelona at least feeling a little more confident with the car for which there will be upgrades and set up changes this weekend which he is hoping will add further to his comfort and performance.

"After three races it [the car] is a bit trickier than I probably expected but in saying that, in doing another race, there were a lot of things I understood in the car," added Ricciardo.

"[There are] Some updates that will help in pure set up, and there are some things we can be doing better to help or suit me, and we'll try that in Barcelona.

"I think it will be a bit easier there, maybe more like Bahrain where I was able to get up to speed a bit quicker, and it's a track I'm familiar with.

"I'm not going to expect anything but I hope it should be a bit easier and I can show some true speed."