Skip to main content

Sign up for free

  • Get quick access to your favorite articles

  • Manage alerts on breaking news and favorite drivers

  • Make your voice heard with article commenting.

Recommended for you

Alpine’s 2026 F1 form no surprise to Racing Bulls

Formula 1
Alpine’s 2026 F1 form no surprise to Racing Bulls

Thierry Neuville wants to "make everyone proud again” at WRC Rally Islas Canarias

WRC
Rally Islas Canarias
Thierry Neuville wants to "make everyone proud again” at WRC Rally Islas Canarias

Heinrich with JDC for Long Beach a “fun scenario” says Porsche Penske enduro teammate Andlauer

IMSA
Long Beach
Heinrich with JDC for Long Beach a “fun scenario” says Porsche Penske enduro teammate Andlauer

Cadillac confirms FP1 plan for Colton Herta in 2026 F1 season

Formula 1
Cadillac confirms FP1 plan for Colton Herta in 2026 F1 season

F1 fans surprised by modest addition to Charles Leclerc’s garage

Formula 1
Saudi Arabian GP
F1 fans surprised by modest addition to Charles Leclerc’s garage

Robin Frijns admits BMW’s struggles in WEC: “We don’t fully understand the car yet”

WEC
Imola
Robin Frijns admits BMW’s struggles in WEC: “We don’t fully understand the car yet”

Lewis Hamilton’s "reinvigorated" Ferrari form earns praise from Nigel Mansell

Formula 1
Saudi Arabian GP
Lewis Hamilton’s "reinvigorated" Ferrari form earns praise from Nigel Mansell

Max Verstappen backs Gianpiero Lambiase McLaren F1 move: 'He’d be stupid not to take it'

Formula 1
Max Verstappen backs Gianpiero Lambiase McLaren F1 move: 'He’d be stupid not to take it'
Formula 1 Miami GP

RB: Ricciardo performance in Miami F1 sprint "had been coming"

RB team boss Laurent Mekies says Daniel Ricciardo's fourth place in Formula 1's sprint in Miami "had been coming" as the Australian had been making steady progress under the radar.

Filip Cleeren
Filip Cleeren
Edited:
Daniel Ricciardo, RB F1 Team, celebrates in Parc Ferme
Ricciardo endured a tough start to the 2024 season, being outperformed by team-mate Yuki Tsunoda in the opening race while struggling to get comfortable aboard the VCARB01.
The Australian's difficulties dashed the momentum of him being considered for a 2025 Red Bull seat, but in recent races, he has been working his way back to competitiveness.
In China, following a requested chassis change, Ricciardo was vying for points until he was hit by Lance Stroll under a mid-race safety car.
In Miami, Ricciardo qualified and finished fourth in Saturday's sprint to score his first points of the year, employing a stout defence against intrinsically quicker cars over the 19-lap contest.
Team principal Mekies said that performance didn't come out of the blue as Ricciardo had been making improvements in recent races without a result to show for it.
"I'm sure it was a huge weight [off his shoulders] because the US is nearly his second home race," Mekies told Motorsport.com.
"He did it in style with an incredible defence to Carlos [Sainz] and the McLaren [of Oscar Piastri]. It was a fantastic moment for him.
"In fairness, we had seen signs of improvement before, but it was very difficult to explain it to the world.
"Saudi was a better performance than Bahrain, Australia was better than Saudi, Japan was better than Australia and China was better than Japan.
"It had been coming in many, many small steps and we think there is more steps we can do in the next few races to help suit the car better to him."
Daniel Ricciardo, RB F1 Team VCARB 01

Daniel Ricciardo, RB F1 Team VCARB 01

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

When asked if there was a definitive answer on why he struggled, Mekies said: "Let's just say that we identified stuff he was not happy with and took away quite a lot of the speed.
"We have tried to tick all the boxes to erase these limitations and there are a few more we would like to see ticked over the next few weekends.
"It was always planned to introduce a new chassis before race six. It was a nice box to tick on our issues with Daniel to make him more comfortable and he did better straight away in China and Miami.
"It's a big value for a team to be able to understand and analyse what is happening with the drivers and it's not always visible on the data.
"We are still trying to understand what it is that was disturbing him before, and it's a work in progress."
Daniel Ricciardo, RB F1 Team VCARB 01, Carlos Sainz, Ferrari SF-24, Oscar Piastri, McLaren MCL38

Daniel Ricciardo, RB F1 Team VCARB 01, Carlos Sainz, Ferrari SF-24, Oscar Piastri, McLaren MCL38

Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images

Ricciardo endured a much tougher main grand prix, being eliminated from Q1 in 18th and finishing in a train in 15th. According to Mekies, that swing of results shows how easy it is to be bumped out of a tight midfield pack if drivers or teams get the tiniest thing wrong.
"You have to nail every single aspect of the weekend at a top level. If we don't do it, we are out of Q1 straight away," he explained.
"We had a fantastic performance with Daniel in the sprint quali and in the sprint itself. And then in the main quali, we were a little bit out of the tyre window, a little bit of a mistake there, and suddenly you're out and that's the reality.
"That's what I like about racing. It's 10 or 12 cars fighting, but it's certainly a very intense pressure on the team."
Read Also:

Share Or Save This Story

Previous article Verstappen: Brown trying to "stir things up" with Newey/Red Bull F1 comment
Next article Why Miami isn’t feeling any heat from Las Vegas F1 competition

Top Comments

More from
Filip Cleeren

Red Bull snaps up Racing Bulls F1 tech chief as Dan Fallows starts new role

Formula 1
Formula 1
Red Bull snaps up Racing Bulls F1 tech chief as Dan Fallows starts new role

F1 'needs to decide' on the next engine regulations this year – Stefano Domenicali

Formula 1
Formula 1
F1 'needs to decide' on the next engine regulations this year – Stefano Domenicali

Honda's painful Japan homecoming is just the start of a bumpy ride

Formula 1
Japanese GP
Honda's painful Japan homecoming is just the start of a bumpy ride
More from
Daniel Ricciardo

Daniel Ricciardo reflects on the emotional toll of highs and lows of F1: 'A lot of days hurt'

Formula 1
Formula 1
Japanese GP
Daniel Ricciardo reflects on the emotional toll of highs and lows of F1: 'A lot of days hurt'

Daniel Ricciardo explains how his iconic F1 shoey celebration first began

Formula 1
Formula 1
Japanese GP
Daniel Ricciardo explains how his iconic F1 shoey celebration first began

Daniel Ricciardo on how he knew time was right for F1 exit: "Grateful" Racing Bulls made the call

Formula 1
Formula 1
Japanese GP
Daniel Ricciardo on how he knew time was right for F1 exit: "Grateful" Racing Bulls made the call
More from
Racing Bulls

Alpine’s 2026 F1 form no surprise to Racing Bulls

Formula 1
Formula 1
Alpine’s 2026 F1 form no surprise to Racing Bulls

Racing Bulls planning double upgrade due to enforced April break for F1

Formula 1
Formula 1
Miami GP
Racing Bulls planning double upgrade due to enforced April break for F1

Why F1 drivers will always complain about new rules, according to Liam Lawson

Formula 1
Formula 1
Why F1 drivers will always complain about new rules, according to Liam Lawson

Latest news

Alpine’s 2026 F1 form no surprise to Racing Bulls

Formula 1
Alpine’s 2026 F1 form no surprise to Racing Bulls

Thierry Neuville wants to "make everyone proud again” at WRC Rally Islas Canarias

WRC
Rally Islas Canarias
Thierry Neuville wants to "make everyone proud again” at WRC Rally Islas Canarias

Heinrich with JDC for Long Beach a “fun scenario” says Porsche Penske enduro teammate Andlauer

IMSA
Long Beach
Heinrich with JDC for Long Beach a “fun scenario” says Porsche Penske enduro teammate Andlauer

Cadillac confirms FP1 plan for Colton Herta in 2026 F1 season

Formula 1
Cadillac confirms FP1 plan for Colton Herta in 2026 F1 season

Feature

Discover prime content

The political shift that will determine F1's next engine formula

Formula 1
Miami GP
By Stuart Codling
The political shift that will determine F1's next engine formula

Is it now or never for Russell in hunt for F1 title?

Formula 1
By Ronald Vording
Is it now or never for Russell in hunt for F1 title?

The top 11 lost F1 victories after the flag

Formula 1
By Kevin Turner
The top 11 lost F1 victories after the flag

The remnant of the V10 era in F1's previous switch to V8 engines

Formula 1
By Jake Boxall-Legge
The remnant of the V10 era in F1's previous switch to V8 engines
View more