Daniel Ricciardo fumes at 'flaw in F1 rules' after flying tyre smashed into him
Daniel Ricciardo feels there is a flaw in the Formula 1 rules after having his race ruined by first-lap misfortune.
Ricciardo was not involved in the first-corner pile-up which saw the race red flagged. But he did pick up damage as a result of it after a loose tyre went flying through the air and smashed into his car, causing extensive damage.
The red flag gave AlphaTauri mechanics the time to get to work on the car and they were able to fix it in time to send Ricciardo back out on track when the race got going again. "I remember seeing a tyre came off the rim and was frisbeeing through the air. It started coming closer and my instinct was to duck my head," he said.
"I didn't feel anything heavy so I was like, 'Alright, cool'. And then after turn one I looked in the mirrors and I could see the rear wing was damaged. I figured the tyre got the wing, but then I got the news that it was a red flag so I was like, 'Alright, the team can hopefully repair it'. And they did a great job."
But, along with fellow Aussie Oscar Piastri who also picked up damage, race control forced Ricciardo to start from the pit lane. They were a full lap down by the time they began racing, which the 34-year-old feels was unjust.
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"It exposed a flaw or something in the rules because I didn't feel like we did a racing lap and then we started the race a lap down," he said. "So Oscar and I fell victim to that.
"Okay, it was the two of us today, but if 15 cars had damage and had to do what we did, are they going to start the race with 15 cars a lap down? I don't think so. I think they need to be a bit more open-minded. That was frustrating... really frustrating."
Yuki Tsunoda finished ninth to score more points for AlphaTauri, who have made great strides in car competitiveness in recent weeks. That is the most galling part for Ricciardo, who was adamant that another personal haul of points was on the table had he been in the fight.
"We were exceptionally fast today," he added. "We couldn't always show it because we were a lap down and just having to play the team game, of course, and not get in the way of Yuki's race or even other cars around us. But the times we did have some clear air, especially towards the end there were a couple of laps where I was able to show them my speed. Frustratingly fast.
"I feel for the team. Me and my championship, I'm not in a championship hunt, but I'm here to help the team get seventh I the championship and I felt I could have heavily contributed today. It's a shame the rules are written the way they are at the moment and there doesn't seem to be any flexibility.
"We could have got a lot of points. You know, I don't want to be the story of could've, would've, should've but, at least on pace, our pace spoke volumes that we could've moved through the field quite well."
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