Daniel Ricciardo finished sixth in the Japanese Grand prix but he was philosophical about the result.
“It wasn’t a very exciting race for me, and unfortunately it just wasn’t my day”, the Australian said. “Kimi’s (Raikkonen) penalty was a bit of a bummer for us as it put us on the wet side of the grid and that compromised the start.
My launch was not too bad but Lewis (Hamilton) obviously struggled to get off the line. I had to go around him through the wet and that made me lose a place to Sergio (Perez). Seb (Vettel) had a good exit out of Turn 14 and made quick work of me on the straight, then he caught Perez quickly as well. That sort of shaped the first stint for me.
We struggled to stay close to the cars in front as we couldn’t follow them in the dirty air. And we didn’t have the straight line speed to make an attack. We struggled in the traffic and fell behind the eight ball.
In the final stint towards the end I had a clear track and I was able put in some good laps but it wasn’t enough. I’m not going to get too down about it. I didn’t think there was anything else we could have done today, it was just circumstances and how the race panned out. We’ll come back in Austin ready to have a good weekend on track and also eat plenty of barbeque. I’m going to diet for the next few days so I arrive lighter in Austin and can enjoy the local food!”
Fuel flow meter issue and floor problem hampered Daniel Ricciardo ’s race
Red Bull’s engineers discovered later there was a fuel flow meter issue. The RB12’s floor also had a problem.
“The engines are towards the end of their life now. Plus his car was perhaps touching a little bit [on the floor] down the straight too. Both drivers will get their fifth and final engine for the next race”, team’s principal Christian Horner explained.
