Daniel Ricciardo reveals reason for progress after season-best result at British Grand Prix

Daniel Ricciardo has put together another strong performance in a further indication he is continuing to turn around his form in his first year with McLaren.

The Australian drove an excellent race to finish fifth at the British Grand Prix — his best result of the season so far.

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While carnage ensued ahead of him at Silverstone as Max Verstappen crashed out of the race on the opening lap, Ricciardo was very impressive as he held his position.

Lewis Hamilton claimed his eighth victory at the British Grand Prix after he was involved in a dramatic incident with Verstappen.

Starting sixth on the grid, Ricciardo moved up one place largely due to Verstappen’s controversial exit from the race.

There was some minor concern early on when smoke appeared to be coming out of Ricciardo’s McLaren.

But that subsided as he found his rhythm on the track.

Ricciardo was able to leapfrog Carlos Sainz into P5 after the Ferrari was held up by a slow pit stop.

“Well done Daniel, you’re doing well, you’re doing well,” his team radio encouraged during the race.

Ricciardo was once again locked in a tight battle with Sainz over the final 20 laps, with the Spaniard less than a second behind for almost half the race.

Daniel Ricciardo has another reason to smile after his great result at the British Grand Prix. (Photo by Peter Fox/Getty Images)Source:Getty Images

But he was determined not to have a repeat of the finish to the Austrian Grand Prix a fortnight ago, where Sainz surged over the final laps to overtake him.

The 32-year-old was delighted he managed to hold on for his best result of the season.

“Happy with my first top five of the year,” Ricciardo said.

“Took a while, better late than never. Yeah, happy with that.”

While a podium finish was out of reach, Ricciardo was pleased he was able to defend his position from Sainz.

“When I saw Carlos coming in that second stint he caught me so fast,” he said.

More impressed with @danielricciardo holding off Sainz tbh.

“I was obviously ready for the fight and the defence but the pace he caught me I thought maybe — if I was a betting man or if I was watching from the outside, I guess he was the betting favourite (to overtake).

“But I certainly backed myself and I wasn’t going to go out without a fight.

In a promising sign, Ricciardo said he is finally starting to get used to his car.

“I think actually pushing to defend allowed me to stay on the limit a bit more and get a bit more comfortable with the car on the edge,” he said.

“I learned a bit more from that actually so we’ll keep going.

While he was happy with the result, Ricciardo is looking to string together a few excellent performances before he can say he’s back at his best.

“I definitely need to have a few (good results) in a row,” he said.

Ricciardo was in fine form at the British Grand Prix. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)Source:Getty Images

“I need to have that consistency now to kind of have a bit more faith in saying that.

“I want to say that and I do feel better but there’s still certainly some time on the table that I need to find and get comfortable with the car.

“But overall, a good weekend. Yeah, let’s go.”

His teammate Lando Norris finished fourth to complete a very strong performance for McLaren.

“Happy with the points,” he said.

“Both cars in the top five for the first time this year.”

Ricciardo’s next outing will be at the Hungarian Grand Prix in two weeks’ time.

“I love that circuit,” he said.

“If I can have a strong weekend there, that will be some confidence to be like: ‘Alright, this is now the trajectory’.”

British Grand Prix results

1st: Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)

2nd: Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)

3rd: Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes)

4th: Lando Norris (McLaren)

5th: Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren)

6th: Carlos Sainz (Ferrari)

7th: Fernando Alonso (Alpine)

8th: Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)

9th: Sebastian Ocon (Alpine)

10th: Yuki Tsunoda (Alpha Tauri)

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