Daniel Ricciardo explained that his best Q3 effort at the British Grand Prix was compromised by a malfunctioning DRS, as he took a low-key sixth place.
Ricciardo finished almost half a second behind Max Verstappen as the Red Bull drivers were firmly outside of contention for pole position at Silverstone.
“I lost DRS between Turns 4 and 6,” said Ricciardo to TV reporters after the session.
“[It was on] the last lap, they figured it, the best lap, I didn’t have it. It’s alright, just a bit of a shame. I don’t know why, just an inconvenient time.
“It [cost me] a few tenths, it’s not going to change the world for us. It’s frustrating. We know we’re already a bit off the pace and down the straights, we lose a lot.
“When I saw I was pulling the DRS and it wasn’t working, it was more frustrating than anything.”
Ricciardo is nonetheless hopeful that he and Red Bull can profit from unusually hot weather at Silverstone in race trim.
“I’m really optimistic it won’t be a one-stop boring race,” he said.
“I think it’s going to be hotter tomorrow. Hopefully a two-stop works. We chose to save a new set of Softs in Q2 if we need to use them in the race, planning a bit in advance for tomorrow.
“We knew coming into qualifying we would be fifth and sixth as a team so trying to make the most of the race.”
