F1 News, Reports and Race Results

Ricciardo confused by 'zero pace' McLaren at Silverstone

Daniel Ricciardo was left confused and frustrated at the end of the British Grand Prix by his McLaren's depressed pace as he had no clear explanation for the deficit.

While McLaren teammate Lando Norris enjoyed a reasonably good race at Silverstone where the Briton finished sixth, Ricciardo once again endorsed the role of second fiddle.

From P14 on the grid, the Aussie spent the bulk of his lonely afternoon outside of the top ten, ultimately crossing the checkered flag in 13th position after what he described as "a pretty poor race".

"Zero pace," a frustrated Ricciardo told the media at the end of the day. "A little bit like Barcelona where I didn’t seem to operate at the same level of grip as the cars around me.

"I could just feel it through the tyres as well, trying to carry speed.

"Obviously a little bit confused by that at the moment. It’s clear what I felt, but the reasons why I’m obviously not sure. It was just a bit odd, so we have a bit of investigating to do."

Ricciardo also revealed admitted that a DRS failure that materialized on lap 31 also weighed on his efforts.

"Something honestly felt a bit off. I remember turning or braking into Turn 6, and the car was all over the place," he explained.

"I thought I had a puncture, so when I went to look at the rear tyre, I saw the DRS was open.

"We had a failure there, so I came back to the pits to fix it, but then obviously we couldn't use it because the fear that it would get stuck open again.

"At the end then on the restart, I couldn't really attack the cars. But simply we weren’t really quick enough anyway. It was a bit of a lonely afternoon.

"Hopefully we find some answers because obviously it’s a quick turnaround to Austria."

McLaren team boss Andreas Seidl commended Norris for delivering points to the team but the German had no explanation for Ricciardo's disappointing race.

"For us, the positive we take away is that we had a more competitive car this weekend and we’re back in the points after two difficult races," said the German.

"Lando looked competitive all day but unfortunately lost out to Fernando in the final pit-stop, behind the Safety Car.

"Daniel’s weekend didn’t go to plan, which will need careful analysis over the next few days. He wasn’t in a position to deliver competitive lap times yesterday and today.

"In addition, he experienced a DRS failure that required an additional pit-stop mid-race and required him to run without the DRS in the second half of the race."

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

Michael Delaney

Recent Posts

McLaren: No regrets over timing of Norris pit stop in Sao Paulo GP

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has insisted that the squad has no regrets about their…

1 hour ago

Williams' Boutsen hoists the mainsail in Adelaide

On this day in 1989, Williams' Thierry Boutsen secured his second F1 win when he…

2 hours ago

Horner: Max 'answered critics' with epic Sao Paulo GP drive

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner hailed Max Verstappen’s sensational Sao Paulo Grand Prix victory…

3 hours ago

Sainz left puzzled by double crash drama in rainy São Paulo

Carlos Sainz was left scratching his head after a disastrous Sunday at the Sao Paulo…

4 hours ago

Alonso pushed through agonizing pain to complete Sao Paulo GP

Fernando Alonso braved both physical agony and mechanical challenges in the Sao Paulo Grand Prix,…

6 hours ago

Alpine double-podium in Brazil could deliver $30 million windfall

Alpine’s remarkable double podium at the São Paulo Grand Prix with Esteban Ocon and Pierre…

20 hours ago