Daniel Ricciardo said he was “very proud” to finish fourth on the grid in sprint qualifying for the Miami F1 Grand Prix. Ricciardo’s time in SQ3 was just four tenths of a second behind poleman Max Verstappen. This is a result of improved single lap performance at the Japanese GP and Chinese GP.
“I know it’s in me because I’ve done it before,” Ricciardo told Sky Sports of Friday afternoon’s performance. “Did you expect to start on the second row? Maybe you didn’t expect this result. “I felt really good in Q2 and I knew this lap would be good enough for Q3. “I think we were fifth at that point, but in my head I was thinking, ‘Oh, if we’re fifth, we can get to Q3.’ “And we finished fourth. It was crazy. The lap times were good, but it’s difficult to drive cleanly around here. ” “In any case it is a complicated track. It’s difficult to reach the central sector right above the chicane. ”When he set his last time, Ricciardo was 2nd at turn 16. He grazed the wall. “It was a success the first time. It actually looked pretty big,” he recalls. “I was definitely pushing, I don’t know if that helped my lap time,” Ricciardo said of the contact with the barrier. “It was really good and obviously I’m very proud of what I achieved today.” “But the team has introduced updates in the last few races. “Last time in China we changed the chassis and this time we also did it. a new floor, so things look a lot better.”The rules for sprint qualifying dictate the tires that all drivers must use. SQ1 and SQ2 are medium and SQ3 is soft. The switch to soft shoes meant that drivers who had performed well at the start of the session struggled, and even polesitter Max Verstappen was surprised that his time was quite good. “I just spoke to Max and he told me that he was very surprised to be first in his lap and I was also surprised that he was fourth,” said Ricciardo. “I thought the softs could go a little bit more, but they weren’t much better than the mediums. I think everyone expected them to go faster, but that wasn’t the case. “I’m very happy with the second one. It’s fantastic. That’s what we were aiming for and the car felt good.” Saturday’s on-track action begins with a 13-lap sprint. Ricciardo, who will start from the second row, hopes to maintain the lead from the start and be in the points when the checkered flag arrives. “Of course I would like to finish eighth or higher,” said Ricciardo. “I want to get some points from there and we’ll see what happens.” “I experienced it in Mexico, but starting from the front of the grid is much better than from 12th or 13th place. “It’s logical, but… Even if we end up in some trouble from Turn 1 on the first lap, of course it’s always like a breath of fresh air to stay a little cleaner up front.” “The second row is where our philosophy is to score points. I’m sure it will help you.” View this post on Instagram A post shared by FORMULA 1® (@f1)
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