Daniel Ricciardo feels the summer break is coming at the right time for him as he cannot currently catch a break in Formula 1, with his latest disappointment coming in Qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix, which saw him qualify only twelfth on the grid.
The Aston Martin Red Bull Racing driver found himself caught out by the spin into the barriers of Lance Stroll during Q2, which prevented him from being able to set a time when track conditions were at their best, and it was raining harder when he attacked again in a bid to escape Q2.
His final flying lap, set on Full Wet tyres, promoted him ahead of the equally delayed Nico Hülkenberg, but it was nowhere near enough to displace Romain Grosjean, who was sitting in the pits and in tenth position as the rain fell hard at the Hungaroring.
Ricciardo has not stood on the podium since he took his superb victory in the Monaco Grand Prix at the end of May, and he hopes the break between this weekend’s race in Hungary and the Belgian Grand Prix at the end of August will hopefully enable him to reset and come back stronger.
“I think [it’s] a good time,” Ricciardo is quoted as saying by Motorsport.com. “We had a triple header to try to get one [win], and now this double header and at least up until today it hasn’t really turned around, or I’ve got any revenge so to speak. So it’s a good time for the break.
“I need some time away from the car. I am growing frustrated with these problems, so probably it’s healthy for me to have some time off.
“I got Monaco, so I kind of joked that my year was done. But it has been a rough run since. I can’t really get a break.”
