Ricciardo frustrated: 'I have to take every corner in five steps now'

The chances are extremely high that Daniel Ricciardo will not be able to secure a seat in Formula 1 next year. With that, we say goodbye to an eight-time race winner who has underperformed at McLaren in recent years, much to his own frustration. The Australian is candid about his problems this year.

The Australian, despite never really competing for a title, has had a glittering career in Formula 1. After his departure from Red Bull Racing, things went downhill for Ricciardo. A year of building at Renault was understandable and the following year the driver was already considerably better, but at McLaren Ricciardo did not make it. He has been regularly beaten over the two years by his considerably less experienced teammate Lando Norris.

Ricciardo shares frustration and confusion

Whereas Ricciardo was always strong precisely at braking and entering corners, that is precisely his pitfall in the McLaren. Speaking to The-Race.com, he said: "You’re approaching a corner, and in a way, [normally] your mind is already on the exit of the corner, but a lot of the time, it’s like ‘OK, I’m driving in the braking zone’, ‘now I’m driving in the turn-in area’, ‘now I’m driving in the throttle phase’." Ricciardo explained.

"It's like I'm taking the corner in five steps now, when really you should approach it as one step. I wait and I react to what I feel. I find it difficult to assess what I am actually doing halfway through the apex of the corner."

Ricciardo is candid and admits to still not being able to handle his car optimally after almost two years, unlike teammate Lando Norris. The difference in championship points between the two McLaren drivers is immense. Norris is in P7 with 101 points, Ricciardo can be found in P12, more than seventy points behind. The Australian is also candid about the relationship with his teammate: "Obviously, we have a lot of data and I also look at Lando's onboards. I see what he is capable of and then I think, 'OK, I see it, but I can't do this'. Then I think again: 'Why don't I just rotate, or why don't I do that?'"