The Australian will start Sunday’s race from 13th on the grid after he was knocked out during Qualifying 2 in Spa-Francorchamps.
Mixed weather dominated the hour making it difficult for teams to get the timing of their qualifying runs correct.
RB gambled on the rain worsening in the latter stages of Qualifying 2, which saw Ricciardo in the garage as the chequered flag waved, the 35-year-old bumped out of the session.
To that point, the West Aussie had shown promising pace, and had featured well inside the top 10 at points.
“I felt really good, and maybe for that reason I probably haven’t yet absorbed that we start 13th,” he explained.
“I feel a lot better than 13th. I felt like every time we crossed the line, we were inside the top 10; at times I heard he was saying P3, P4, so we were competitive.”
The performance came despite a final practice hour that saw Ricciardo bank just five laps after the session was effectively red flagged after just 12 minutes of running.
“I didn’t actually get a proper run this morning, so coming into quali I didn’t really know where we’d be in these conditions,” Ricciardo said.
“Fair to say I didn’t think would probably be as competitive as we were.
“I was like ‘Alright, we got something and let’s go and get it’.”
However, in the changeable weather, RB read it wrong and Ricciardo was sat in the garage as conditions on track improved in the final moments of Qualifying 2.
“We decided to go a bit earlier in case the rain got heavier,” he explained.
“I was able just to improve a tenth or something and in the end the track didn’t get worse.
“Running at the end was the place to be and by that point we were back in the garage.
“I don’t even want to say we got it wrong, we just didn’t get it right,” he continued.
“It wasn’t a call that I was upset with, it made sense and if it just rained a bit heavier, we look like the smart guys.
“So for that, of course, we’re all a little bit disappointed but it wasn’t a call that we’re all kicking ourselves over, it’s just the one we made and wasn’t the [right] one.
“We still only missed out by a couple of tenths, so wasn’t much, but I’m disappointed because I felt we really had a decent car.”
Ahead of Ricciardo are all eight cars from the top four teams, followed by Fernando Alonso’s Aston Martin, both Alpines, and Alex Albon’s Williams.
It’s a mix that offers some opportunity for points in the race, Ricciardo having enjoyed good long run pace on Friday.
“We definitely had to play around a bit yesterday to figure out what was best,” Ricciardo said of his car balance for the race.
“FP1 we were not in the right place. I think we got closer in FP2.
“Now with the track resetting, tomorrow is a little bit of a, probably not quite say lottery, but there’s still some unknowns.
“I would say maybe it’s more a two-stop race than a one-stop, the way the tyres were graining and stuff yesterday, and the track hasn’t gripped up.
“Hopefully that means it’s an exiting two-stop, dry race.”
While Ricciardo will start 13th, team-mate Yuki Tsunoda will line up last after taking on new power unit elements earlier in the weekend.
The Belgian Grand Prix begins at 15:00 local time Sunday (23:00 AEST).
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