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Showing posts with the label struggles

McLaren explain what Ricciardo brought to team 'even during struggles'

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McLaren have outlined the qualities and skills that Daniel Ricciardo brought to the team, despite his struggles during his two-year stint at the squad. It was confirmed in August that Ricciardo and McLaren had mutually agreed to terminate his multi-year contract early, resulting in the partnership coming to an end at the close of the 2022 F1 season. Ricciardo has been left without a seat on the grid in 2023, and will instead take up a reserve driver role at Red Bull. Despite enduring a difficult time at McLaren, the squad have revealed that there were aspects of Ricciardo's approach that they "appreciated immensely". Ricciardo's technical skills praised James Key – Technical Director at McLaren , who previously worked with Ricciardo in the junior days of his F1 career – believes that the eight-time race winner has brought a good technical reference to the team. ...

Ricciardo on 2022 struggles – I wouldn't quit mid-season

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Daniel Ricciardo says despite his tough 2022 season , he never considered quitting F1 during the middle of the year. Having been generally shaded by teammate Lando Norris in 2021 despite winning that year's Italian Grand Prix, Ricciardo was overwhelmingly overshadowed by the Briton in 2022, scoring just 37 points to Norris' 122. Such was Ricciardo's underperformance that McLaren elected to terminate the Australian's contract one year early and replace him with rookie Oscar Piastri from 2023 onwards. Though several teams are changing drivers for 2023, Ricciardo never seemed to be seriously in the running for any of the available seats, and is set to spend next year on F1's sidelines as he takes up a role as test and reserve driver with his former team Red Bull. But despite his struggles in 2022, Ricciardo said he never considered walking away from the sport before the end of the season, as F1 luminaries such as James Hunt, Nigel Mansell and Juan Pablo M...

How Mercedes' struggles influenced Russell's dynamic with Hamilton

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George Russell admits that his dynamic with Lewis Hamilton may have differed had Mercedes had a more competitive car in 2022. Russell stepped up to the Silver Arrows following a three-year stint with Williams, replacing Valtteri Bottas as Hamilton's teammate. While the team had previously dominated the sport in recent years – having won eight consecutive Constructors' Championships between 2014 and 2021 – the 2022 campaign proved more challenging, with the W13 unable to match the pace of Red Bull and Ferrari's challengers. However, the struggles that Mercedes faced may had had a positive influence on the relationship between Russell and Hamilton. Russell reflects on dynamic with Hamilton "I think, for sure, the dynamic [between myself and Lewis] would have been slightly different had we arrived at the first race and had the fastest car on the grid," Russell told ...