A year on from his maiden Formula 1 victory in Canada, Daniel Ricciardo returns to the Montreal track admitting his love for the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve has grown.
The Infiniti Red Bull Racing driver overtook long-time leader Nico Rosberg in the closing laps of last years race, but revealed he had fallen in love with the track on his first visit back in 2012 whilst driving for Scuderia Toro Rosso.
“Possibly winning has made me love it a little bit more but really I’ve loved it since my first lap, back when I was driving for Toro Rosso,” revealed Ricciardo. “I remember coming back into the pits and saying “what a circuit,” I was amazed at how good it was – and I’d only done an install.
“It’s just a ridiculous amount of fun. You can jump across the kerbs and really get the car bouncing around. It’s like getting back to go-kart days, you really feel like you own it – and I love that.
“You can get aggressive with it, and aim to just brush the wall. There’s a lot of risk but that brings a lot of adrenaline with it. It’d be wonderful if you were doing it in isolation but with 100,000 screaming fans urging you on, it’s just mega.”
Ricciardo revealed the choice drivers have to make to be quick in Montreal depends on how close that driver is willing to get to the walls that line the circuit, with playing it safe sacrificing time, but he also revealed the perils of getting too close!
“It’s a clear choice,” started Ricciardo, “some guys will play it safe and sacrifice half a tenth to get through there cleanly; others who will take a risk and go flat out trying to find a little bit. The nearer you are, the faster you’ll go.
“Give the wall a kiss and you feel pretty good: Kiss it too hard and that’s it!”
