Daniel Ricciardo is looking for answers to why he was not as quick as those in front of him after being forced to settle for fifth in the Austrian Grand Prix on Sunday.
The Australian saw his Red Bull Racing team-mate Max Verstappen claim a podium finish at the teams home race, but Ricciardo felt the speed was not there on his side of the garage that saw him finish more than twenty-five seconds behind his teenage stable mate.
He hopes to find out the reasons behind his struggles in Austria before next weekend’s British Grand Prix at Silverstone, admitting it was disappointing not to join his team-mate on the podium.
“I think for the team it was a really good day,” said Ricciardo. “We didn’t expect to be on the podium here in Austria. Obviously I wish I was up there with Max, but from my side the race was a bit disappointing.
“At the beginning we seemed to get passed before Turn 8 which is not normal, so that was a bit frustrating but then once it settled we just weren’t quick. I was obviously trying to push on the tyre and then get what I could out of it.
“It seemed we could hold the pace, but then when everyone was improving and getting quicker and quicker we were just getting slower and slower. For now I just want to understand why and look into it. If there are things I need to do better, then I will make sure to figure that out.
“I’m glad the Red Bull Ring and Silverstone are back to back. It’s always nice when you can get back into a race straight away so hopefully Silverstone is better.
“We’ve got a few days to work out why I wasn’t quick today, but I’m in the factory tomorrow so we’ve got time to look into it. But for now for sure it was disappointing not to be quicker.”