Categories: F1 News, Reports and Race ResultsRed Bull Racing

Ricciardo eager to get 'aggressive' in Canada

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Daniel Ricciardo says he loves the Canadian Grand Prix because he can be "aggressive" with the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

The Red Bull driver secured his first grand prix victory in Canada last year, overtaking Nico Rosberg in the closing laps after a late charge through the field. Even before that win, Ricciardo says he was a big fan of the circuit and is looking forward to being able to attack the semi-permanent track in Montreal.

"Possibly winning has made me love it a little bit more but really I’ve loved it since my first lap, back when I was driving for Toro Rosso," Ricciardo said. "I remember coming back into the pits and saying “what a circuit,” I was amazed at how good it was – and I’d only done an install.

"It’s just a ridiculous amount of fun. You can jump across the kerbs and really get the car bouncing around. It’s like getting back to go-kart days, you really feel like you own it – and I love that. You can get aggressive with it, and aim to just brush the wall.

"There’s a lot of risk but that brings a lot of adrenaline with it. It’d be wonderful if you were doing it in isolation but with 100,000 screaming fans urging you on, it’s just mega."

And Ricciardo says pushing right up to the walls on the exits of the chicanes is where the extra bits of time can be found in Canada.

"It’s a clear choice: some guys will play it safe and sacrifice half a tenth to get through there cleanly; others who will take a risk and go flat out trying to find a little bit. The nearer you are, the faster you’ll go. Give the wall a kiss and you feel pretty good: Kiss it too hard and that’s it!"

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.