Red Bull have always struggled on long straights, but Daniel Ricciardo claims it’s tougher on the Paul Ricard circuit. Ricciardo has been running with higher downforce than Max Verstappen which might explain some of the troubles he experienced on straights.
The Aussie went on to admit if the forecast rain arrives, Red Bull might get lucky.
“Of course come 4.10pm [the start of the race] I’ll be confident but on paper, we’re going to be pretty slow on the straight compared to the guys in front. But if it rains, we might be the lucky dogs,” Ricciardo told formula1.com.
Ricciardo will start from 5th on the grid just behind team-mate Max Verstappen. A strong weekend could see Ricciardo move above Bottas in the drivers' championship and for this to happen, boss Christian Horner also wishes for rainfall during the race.
“In dry conditions, if everything is normal, then yes [Mercedes are out of reach], hopefully, it is not normal, but yeah, they’re quicker than us at the moment,” Horner told Sky Sports.