Daniel Ricciardo is guaranteed to finish third in the Drivers' Championship standings after finishing third in the Mexican Grand Prix, although the Australian was disappointed not to stand on the podium to soak up the atmosphere in the stadium.
The Red Bull driver actually crossed the line fifth, but post-race penalties for team-mate Max Verstappen and Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel meant Ricciardo was promoted to third hours after the race, giving him enough of a points buffer to Vettel in fourth to guarantee his third place in the championship.
"Obviously I’m happy to get the points and I think that means third for me in the Drivers’ Championship so I’m quite proud of that this year," he said.
"Sure it would have been nice to get up on the podium and enjoy it but none the less that was the situation today."
Ricciardo said he enjoyed the battle in the closing laps despite the frustration of not being able to pass before making contact with Vettel – for which the Ferrari driver was penalised as the stewards deemed he moved under braking.
"It was a fun race. Even though I was quite frustrated after the race with the incident and all that, I still had a lot of fun with that battle," he added. "And being the hunter at the end is so much more fun than driving around by yourself.
"The race came alive and obviously it became a bit spicy but it was a cool day. Sure I want to race and having penalties after the race isn’t ideal, but I did feel today that it was called for.
"I committed to the move and he [Vettel] squeezed me. Racing should be tough and l don’t expect being waved through but we talked about the moving under braking and that’s on paper now.
"The only thing I’m disappointed of is not to be in the stadium in that moment but the podium is still up so I’ll go and have a few photos with the guys."
