Daniel Ricciardo (P8, 4 pts): 7.5/10
One year ago Daniel Ricciardo was on pole position in Mexico with Red Bull. However it was a tough build-up to this year's race for the Aussie, who lagged behind his Renault team mate Nico Hulkenberg in Friday's practice session and then lost the whole of FP3 while the team worked on a technical issue with both cars. Unsurprisingly it meant that Ricciardo missed out on the final pole shoot-out round in qualifying, He lined up on the grid in 13th, but as a result had a free choice of tyre. He opted to start with a long stint on the hard compound which worked a treat, earning him a 30-lap spell in sixth place before his stop on lap 51 dropped him back a couple of spots. After that, unable to get back around Sergio Perez in the remaining laps despite his best efforts, it was just about bringing the car home - which he duly did. "It's a solid day with both cars back in the points," he commented. "It's been a tough week for the team, so I'm proud of them and how they've kept their spirits high."
