McLaren newcomer Daniel Ricciardo insists he has no issue with the team orders used during the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Imola, when he was told to swap positions with team-mate Lando Norris.
Ricciardo joined McLaren from Renault this year, teaming up with the far less experienced Norris, who is only in his third Formula 1 season.
But during the race, Ricciardo was ordered to let Norris through in the belief he was being held up by his team-mate, which ultimately proved to be true as the young Briton went on to score a podium finish, whilst Ricciardo could only muster sixth.
But the Aussie insists he has no problem accepting he’s “not quick enough” yet in what is only his second race for the team.
“Of course the competitor in me is like ‘I want to stay in front’ but maybe its maturity and experience now, but I acknowledge that I wasn’t quick enough,” he told EFTM.com.
“I’m my biggest critic; in my head I’m like ‘if I was quick enough I’d of pulled away and not been in that position’. It’s not like the team were holding me back so Lando could have that position, it was all on me.”
The laid-back 31-year-old saw no point in creating trouble by refusing to obey team orders so early in his journey with McLaren.
“Obviously I’m not up to speed yet as much as I want, so yeah, just take that one on the chin and figure out a way to be better, as opposed to jumping up and down. I certainly don’t want to create any friction in the team on race two.”
Ricciardo sees McLaren as a long-term project and is certain they’re a team that can deliver him a championship-winning car.
“Yes.” He exclaimed when asked if he can win a title with McLaren. “The reason why I paused is because like, if it’s a yes or no, it’s a yes. Is it this year? No.
“I’ve already seen from the first couple of races – I look at my lap on the weekend and I’m pretty confident I’m not getting everything out of it and I was four tenths off pole or something – so even like that, the team has closed the gap a bunch.
“The rule changes are going to change everything next year. I feel like what the team’s already done, and this year feel likes a step in the right direction. The structure, the stability, guns are blazing down here and it’s really cool to see. That fills me with a lot of confidence to give you a yes.”
Meanwhile Ricciardo says he doesn’t regret leaving Red Bull, despite what seems to be a strong season for the Milton Keynes team, which has already claimed a pole and victory in 2021 as it looks set to challenge Mercedes all year long.
“No regrets,” he added. “I got asked the other day like ‘oh looking at Red Bull this year, looks like they can fight for a championship, do you wish you were still there?’ I said even if I didn’t move that year, like even if I stayed with Red Bull instead of Renault for that one or two years, I think even by now, this year, I would have moved.
“I couldn’t see myself spending what, another three years there. Regardless of whether I went to Renault or not, I couldn’t see myself staying at Red Bull in 2021.”
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