Red Bull Racing's Daniil Kvyat says that he has a better understanding of Formula One as he prepares for this second season with the team in 2016.

The young Russian admitted earlier this month that his sudden rise from the Toro Rosso junior squad into the spotlight at the main Red Bull Racing team had left him feeling the pressure at points during the year.

But he insists that the experience, while not ideal, had nonetheless made him a stronger competitor as time went on, and he's confident that he'll now be a better driver than ever this year as a result.

"It was an up-and-down season, and when you find yourself in the middle group it's hard to be consistent," Kvyat told Autosport this week. "Mental adjustments are always tricky.

"I just had to forget about the final positions and just focus on driving. That was it. It proved to be a good, efficient way.

"From Monaco there were many more positive races and a much more positive understanding with the car.

"At the end of my rookie season there were no mistakes at all," he pointed out.

"But sometimes they happen. Every driver makes mistakes and obviously I had a crash in Japan and at Austin.

"It's just a quick flash in the pan and you're in the wall," he added. "You just move on. You can't think about it too much."

These lessons learned should put him in good stead for the new season, especially if he can pick up at the same level of performance that he finished on in 2015.

"I wouldn't say that it was perfect," he concluded. "But at least I could say I have a much better understanding of everything."

Feature: Slamming on the brakes - F1's biggest braking points

Key dates for the 2016 F1 season

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

Williams' headaches persist into Vegas practice

Williams is continuing to fight uphill battles this weekend in Las Vegas as a knock-on…

32 mins ago

Ferrari's Sainz 'not satisfied with where we are' in Vegas

It was a solid start to the Las Vegas weekend for Ferrari with Carlos Sainz…

2 hours ago

Norris labels McLaren long-run pace ‘shocking’ in chilly Vegas

Lando Norris didn’t hold back in his assessment of McLaren’s performance on the opening day…

3 hours ago

Hamilton delighted with ‘consistently strong day’ in Vegas

Lewis Hamilton was particularly happy with his opening day of running at the Las Vegas…

4 hours ago

Verstappen stuck with 'draggy' rear wing for Vegas

Red Bull fears that its prospects for this weekend's Las Vegas Grand Prix - which…

5 hours ago

Ferrari and Mercedes admit to plank changes based on FIA’s TD

Ferrari and Mercedes have both modified their car’s floor element in Las Vegas to comply…

6 hours ago