Ricciardo makes Renault F1 debut as RS19 hits track
Daniel Ricciardo has made his on-track debut with the Renault Formula 1 team as its RS19 hit the circuit at Barcelona for a shakedown after all.
Renault had admitted delays to its build schedule meant it might have to cancel plans to use part of its filming day allocation to run the car ahead of the start of official pre-season testing at the Spanish Grand Prix venue on Monday.
The team's F1 managing director Cyril Abiteboul said at its car launch event on Tuesday that the shakedown "may or may not take place" and hinted that even making the start of testing on Monday would be tight.
"We should have a motorhome and a coffee machine working, but that is as far as I am 100% sure!" he joked.
But on Saturday afternoon Renault released videos on social media showing Ricciardo leaving the Barcelona garage to begin a shakedown run and completing his first lap in what would ultimately be a 21-lap run.
"I'm happy to get a first taste in the RS19 today in Barcelona and I'm looking forward to pushing on and learning more with the team over the next couple of weeks," Ricciardo said.
Renault has not yet announced how it will split running between Ricciardo and teammate Nico Hulkenberg next week.
Ricciardo made a shock decision to leave Red Bull for Renault last summer, despite his previous team being a frontrunner and Renault still lagging behind the top three.
He said earlier this week that he accepted he was likely to start the season behind his former employer, but hoped he could emulate at Renault what Lewis Hamilton had achieved when he left McLaren for Mercedes ahead of 2013.
"I guess the dream was getting the team back to winning. That is really the big dream," said Ricciardo of Renault.
"I guess I had that with Red Bull as well and they came from winning ways and then fell off that a bit and then were trying to get that back.
"We got some wins but never really got the massive success that we were after.
"So I am still after that on a personal level. Absolutely that is the dream, to build this back up.
"What Lewis did at Mercedes, there is definitely part of that which inspires me. If I was able to do that here, I wouldn't complain."
Share Or Save This Story
Ferrari drivers escape punishment for clash
Hamilton accepts full responsibility for Albon collision
Vettel, Leclerc called to stewards over accident
Daniel Ricciardo shares heartfelt message after first Indy 500 visit brought back "childhood feelings"
Lando Norris reunites with Daniel Ricciardo for Indy 500 celebrations after disastrous Canadian GP
Daniel Ricciardo says life feels "more real" after abrupt F1 exit
“I went back to the car and cried” – Esteban Ocon opens up about his unexpected year on F1 sidelines
You Ask The Questions: Robert Kubica
On this day: Michael Schumacher’s final unsportsmanlike manoeuvre
George Russell told to turn focus to 2027 as title bid branded "a write-off" after Spanish GP
His worst races would be enough: The remarkable stats behind Kimi Antonelli’s title hopes
Brad Keselowski joins exclusive group with special career milestone
From “angry” to podium: How KTM turned around Pedro Acosta’s Misano weekend
Why Lando Norris doesn’t buy George Russell’s driving style theory
How Kimi Antonelli is proving unbeatable, even when he's beaten
How Norris unfurled a surprising - and "unrepeatable" - Spanish GP pole lap
Audi’s long road back to the top of grand prix racing
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments