Daniel Ricciardo says he expects Red Bull’s rivals to up their game when Formula 1 action returns on Saturday, after he comfortably topped both Thursday sessions in Monaco.
Ricciardo clocked a new track record in the opening session and improved on his time during the afternoon, registering a lap of 1:11.841 on the new-for-2018 Hypersoft tyres.
Red Bull team-mate Max Verstappen finished as runner-up in both sessions, with Sebastian Vettel emerging as the squad’s primary threat, albeit 0.572s behind Ricciardo.
Red Bull has not claimed pole position for a Grand Prix since Ricciardo’s effort at the corresponding event two years ago, and while upbeat over his day, cautioned over expected gains from opponents.
“The intention this weekend was to try and win, and be dominant,” he said.
“Today is good. It is a good start. We topped the sessions, so for now we have done all we can.
“But we have a day off, then Saturday, and I am sure Ferrari and Mercedes will start to put pressure on us.
“It is going to tighten up on Saturday. But all we can do today is try and top it and we did.
“Our long run looked decent. It is not everything around here, but we seem to good in all conditions at the moment.”
Verstappen exuded similar sentiments but reckons Red Bull can be encouraged with its start to the weekend’s activities.
“For sure they [Mercedes and Ferrari] will come close in qualifying because of the engine modes but I’m sure we can still do better so it’s pretty good,” he said.
“There’s not too many set up issues so that always helps on a street circuit. Of course we always have to improve and I’m sure we can find some stuff, but it’s been a good start.”
