Daniel Ricciardo expects Red Bull can make even more progress on Saturday ahead of the British Grand Prix after a strong start.

Both Red Bull drivers finished the second practice session on Friday in the top six, the final two cars within a second of Nico Rosberg's pace-setting time. Ricciardo says he is encouraged by the progress shown after two poor races, but is hoping for another step forward ahead of qualifying.

"It was pretty good, both cars inside the top six, so we look alright for now," Ricciardo said. "I think it was a good day, but we still want to get more out of it, if we can make the steps we think we can for tomorrow we may even be a bit cuter.

"It is fun coming to a high-speed circuit. We made some progress tday, but we still need to keep working. The positions are good to have both cars in the top six, but I think we can still gain more lap time. Within the balance, I don’t think we’re in the perfect window and achieve that tomorrow."

And Ricciardo is hopeful Red Bull can hold off Williams, despite expecting a much tougher challenge in qualifying.

"I think Williams will close up. They always seem to be more on the money on the Saturday, but I would say with the gap we had today we should remain in front of them. We will see what happens I think a top five tomorrow we can be happy with."

Click here for the F1 drivers' girlfriends gallery

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter

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.

Recent Posts

Schumacher’s first F1 winner hits the auction block

Michael Schumacher’s 1992 Benetton B192, the very car that delivered his maiden Formula 1 victory,…

15 hours ago

Why Bortoleto thinks Verstappen could be the perfect teammate

Gabriel Bortoleto is not buying into the widespread idea that lining up alongside Max Verstappen…

18 hours ago

Eddie Cheever: Still the American driver with the most F1 starts

Today, we wish a happy 68th birthday to Eddie Cheever who remains after all these…

19 hours ago

In pictures: Audi's first day on track in Barcelona

History was made at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on Friday as the Audi Revolut F1…

21 hours ago

Mercedes pays tribute to motorsport legend Hans Herrmann

The flags at Mercedes-Benz have been lowered to half-mast as the racing community mourns the…

21 hours ago

McLaren locks in ‘Super Monday’ launch date for 2026 contender

McLaren have officially completed Formula 1’s 2026 launch calendar, confirming they will unveil their new…

23 hours ago