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Daniel Ricciardo will start 16th for the Dutch Grand Prix following a qualifying session he described as “shitty.”
The Australian was bundled out in Qualifying 1 of the session as he struggled to find the limit in his RB.
Ricciardo headed into Saturday looking to make a step gain on set-up from Friday, only for final practice to be effectively rained out – and red flagged for much of the hour.
He was therefore unable to validate changes made to the car ahead of the all-important qualifying hour, though did reveal the team found underlying issues with his car.
“I found a little bit yesterday but, to be honest, there was also a little bit that we found in set-up after when we did the set-down,” he revealed.
“There was a couple of things in the car which weren’t up to scratch.”
Already somewhat behind the eight ball heading into qualifying, Ricciardo completing three runs in Qualifying 1 in a bid to maximise his chances of progressing.
However, gusty conditions, a conservative second lap, and lack of grip on the third meant he could do no better than 16th.
“My second lap, I kind of just took a back step and drove smoother, but didn’t feel fast,” he explained.
“I don’t think that was the way to do it, that wasn’t going to be good enough.
“Going into the last one, obviously you try to find the limit but already in Turn 1 I can feel it sliding.
“Honestly, struggling to have the confidence in the rear in these conditions,” he added.
“Quite easy to go over the limit but then being under the limit just felt slow, so hard to put it together.”
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His early elimination was not well received, with the 35-year-old confessing he “definitely had some internal rage” at the situation.
Set to start Sunday’s race well down the order, the chances of a good result around a circuit that is traditionally difficult to pass on would typically be low.
However, mixed conditions during practice have left teams without all the information they’d usually have, especially on tyre wear, which could open opportunities in the race.
“Qualifying is so important, especially around here, you can set up the weekend,” Ricciardo noted.
“So not only does it hurt today, but it’s likely that tomorrow doesn’t… I don’t like getting pessimistic but it probably doesn’t get much better.
“The [qualifying] session didn’t go well but I think yesterday there was some reasons why we weren’t maybe as quick,” he added.
“But yeah, shitty session.
“We’re not in a hole or anything, but it’s just frustrating when you want to start the second half of the season on a good note.”
