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Renault better in dirty air than last year’s car - Ricciardo

Daniel Ricciardo says that the Renault Formula 1 team has taken a big step in aerodynamic efficiency in 2020, making it easier for the yellow cars to follow rivals.

Alex Albon, Red Bull Racing RB16, leads Esteban Ocon, Renault F1 Team R.S.20, and Daniel Ricciardo, Renault F1 Team R.S.20

Alex Albon, Red Bull Racing RB16, leads Esteban Ocon, Renault F1 Team R.S.20, and Daniel Ricciardo, Renault F1 Team R.S.20

Charles Coates / Motorsport Images

Ricciardo finished eighth in last weekend’s Styrian GP, matching the result achieved by team mate Esteban Ocon at the Austrian event, although the team was hit in both races by costly radiator failures.

The Australian says that it’s much easier now for the drivers to follow rivals than it was with last year’s car.

“I think in race trim we've still got a little bit to improve,” said Ricciardo. “But generally I think we can follow other cars a bit better in the race, and suffer a little bit less with dirty air.

“So I think the downforce and the package we have is a bit more efficient, and I think on low fuel the rear of the car has improved a lot. So traction, if we look at our overlays from last year, we're just getting to full throttle considerably earlier. The rear of the car is certainly at the moment the strength compared to this time last year.”

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Ricciardo says his eighth place in the Styrian GP did not reflect the true potential of the package.

“There's certainly been positives, and if I take the first half of the race, I know I was on a medium and the cars in front were on softs, but I think I was quite, quite close to the pace of [Carlos] Sainz and [Alex] Albon.

“So I think we have improved, especially on a circuit which hasn't been a good one for us. So I'm certainly curious to see how we can get on, at the next few. Silverstone was good for us last year.

“We'll see once we get there, but there's positives to take. As good as points are, eighth feels like, I don't want to say deserve better, I think we've shown pace to get a better result in the last two weekends.

“It's certainly moving forward. I think we've just got to understand a little bit more about the soft, as the guys on the medium at the end, were quite a lot quicker. So see what we can do better there. But generally speaking, the car has certainly taken a step forward, that's for sure."

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