In 2024, Daniel Ricciardo achieved his maiden points in a grand prix by securing eighth place in Canada.
Daniel Ricciardo has revealed that a clutch issue potentially resulted in his jump start at the Canadian Grand Prix, with the RB driver’s five-second penalty described as a “joke” by fans on social media.
Ricciardo produced a fine qualifying display to line up fifth on the grid at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, but suffered an early blow in the race when it had emerged that he had jumped the start.
Daniel Ricciardo overcomes jump start penalty to score points in Canada
Despite the lack of movement from his car before the lights went out, the Australian driver was swiftly issued a five-second penalty.
Fans on social media were furious with the stewards’ ruling, labeling the penalty as a “ridiculous” and accusing Ricciardo of being unfairly “cheated.”
Despite the unpredictable circumstances, the 34-year-old driver managed to recover from his setback and scored his initial points in this season’s grand prix. Prior to this, he had only secured points in the F1 2024 season during the sprint race in Miami, where he achieved a fourth-place finish.
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Ricciardo acknowledged feeling “confused” upon learning about the penalty, but accepted that he sensed the car gradually moving forward on the grid before the race began, attributing it to a possible clutch issue.
In Montreal, he informed the reporters, “I had the sensation that we were losing control of the race. Right from the beginning, we were drifting and lost a few positions. As we approached Turn 2, I vividly recall Lewis [Hamilton] effortlessly overtaking me, while I felt as if I was in Tokyo, completely disoriented.”
“I was momentarily confused, but then I was informed that we had a penalty.”
“I found myself rather puzzled as I was certain that I did not jump the lights. However, I do remember the possibility of the car creeping forward while I was observing the lights, leading me to speculate that there might have been a clutch problem. That would be my assumption.”
After losing positions in the unpredictable weather conditions, Ricciardo was afraid that his opportunity to score points had vanished. However, he was delighted to make a comeback and finish eighth, considering the race as a test of his survival skills.
He said, “I received the penalty, and later when it started raining, we decided to pit for a fresh intermediate tire while the others chose to stay out. Unfortunately, we lost our position on the track due to that.”
“I had a sense that we were losing ground in the race, but towards the end, utilizing the slick conditions, we fought our way past several cars and luckily secured a decent amount of points.”
In conclusion, I am overall content. It is challenging to achieve perfection in these races, and I acknowledge that I have made mistakes.
“At times, our sole focus was on survival, and we are now relieved and grateful that we ultimately reached our goal.”
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