The upcoming Austrian Grand Prix is the host of the second sprint race of the 2022 FIA Formula 1 World Championship season; following the first at Imola earlier in the year. After finishing the Emilia Romagna sprint race in sixth, and last year’s Monza sprint in third (before taking a thrilling maiden McLaren F1 Team win), Daniel Ricciardo feels ready to take on the fifth sprint ever held in F1.
“The Austrian Grand Prix is always a fun one. It’s a great track in a beautiful location and it’s always an exciting race. The past few Sprint races have proven anything is possible so I’m ready to pounce on any opportunities that come my way, as well as creating a few of my own,” says the Australian.
However, the number three driver also addressed the disappointing thirteenth place finish he had at the recent British Grand Prix.
“Whilst the fans were sensational, the British Grand Prix result wasn’t what I wanted it to be, and we’ve got some work to do before this weekend. We’re putting in the hours to figure out why we lacked pace and are doing everything we can to get further up the grid in the second half of this season.
“Hopefully we will make some improvements this weekend and move forward. Let’s keep our heads high and keep going,” Ricciardo concludes.
“I’m hoping to build on my solid performance at Silverstone” – Lando Norris
While Great Britain didn’t yield a brilliant result for Ricciardo, team-mate, Lando Norris, put in a great performance to finish in sixth place at his home race. The McLaren driver now has his eyes set on Austria, where he took his first career podium back in the 2020 season.
“I’m really excited to be back in Spielberg for the Austrian Grand Prix. It’s a Sprint and it’s one of my favourites on the calendar so it’s shaping up to be a nice weekend. Whilst we may not necessarily be fighting for podiums like in the last two years, there is definitely an opportunity for some good points and to have some fun battles.
“It was great to see so many people in papaya this past weekend and I’m buzzing to see all the orange in the crowd this weekend clearly there supporting McLaren… There’s always a great atmosphere and I’m hoping to build on my solid performance at Silverstone.
“We do still have a lot of work to do but we keep pushing forward and we keep fighting.”
McLaren are currently fourth in the constructors standings, but are only six points clear of BWT Alpine F1 Team, meaning a double points finish is important if they want to keep that ‘best of the rest’ position.
