Devastated Daniel Ricciardo in shock after ’dark’ F1 disaster
Valtteri Bottas took pole position for the Portuguese Grand Prix with seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton completing a Mercedes front-row lockout in qualifying, but there was awful news for Daniel Ricciardo.
The Australian F1 star was at a loss to explain why he was knocked out after the first qualifying run, in a disastrous result that sees him line up 16th on the grid for the main event early on Monday morning (AEST).
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After showing promising signs in practice, Ricciardo failed to find any pace in his worst qualifying result since the 2019 Japanese Grand Prix.
“Big, big disappointment,” Ricciardo said afterwards. “I’m still in a little bit of shock actually, just how the session went. To be out in Q1, it’s really like your worst nightmare as a driver.”
“The medium (tyre) at the beginning of the run was OK, but we just didn’t really get a clean lap. And then the soft (tyre), it was just messy, messy.
“Already into Turn 1, I didn’t feel I was helped with some traffic. And then the end of the lap I was just trying to hang on to the rear of the car, I just didn’t really get going from really the start of the lap.
“Then I was trying to probably play catch-up at the end, which just meant a lot of mistakes. Yeah, not a good one.”
Ricciardo hasn’t shot the lights out in his first season with McLaren, but knows it will take time to adjust to a new car and is intent on being patient. He out-qualified teammate Lando Norris in Bahrain and Italy, only to fall behind the Brit when it mattered to clock up seventh and sixth-placed finishes respectively.
Searching for small bits of improvement in every race as he gains more experience behind the wheel of his McLaren, qualifying in Portugal was a huge step back for the West Australian.
“Why we struggled or why it was difficult to put a lap together it’s not so clear at the moment,” Ricciardo said. “I think there’s a few things for sure and there’s some tenths left on the table.
“But it was tricky. So yeah, 16th is grim. It’s not a result I feel good about at all.
“I’m still trying to get out of, let’s say, a little bit of an old style. So I’m still quite conscious about how I approach every corner
“I felt like yesterday (in practice) I’d made a good step towards that, and I certainly felt comfortable yesterday or more comfortable than a couple weeks ago. So that’s why to be standing here now, it’s pretty dark.”
Nothing went right for Daniel RicciardoSource:Getty Images
Bottas beats Hamilton to pole
Meanwhile, Hamilton’s pursuit of a 100th pole position at the track where last year he notched up his record 92nd win was delayed when Bottas earned the 17th of his career.
“It’s a good feeling to be on pole,” Bottas said after a final qualifying session lap of 1min 18.348sec.
“Feels like it’s been a while. It’s been a weak point for me in the first two races. The team have been working hard all weekend and we have a good position for tomorrow.”
Bottas’ performance was well-timed after he had qualified third in the season-opener in Bahrain but then a lowly eighth at Emilia-Romagna. His time was just 0.007sec faster than Hamilton.
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, one point off Hamilton in the drivers’ standings, took third on the grid with his teammate Sergio Perez alongside him on the second row in Portimao.
Verstappen had in fact bettered Bottas’ time but had his 1min 18.209sec run scrubbed out after exceeding track limits.
Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz came in fifth ahead of the Alpine of Esteban Ocon, Norris and Charles Leclerc in the second Ferrari.
Hamilton paid tribute to Bottas “and our team for us both to be on the front row”.
“It was not expected. We have to be happy for that, it was not the perfect lap but I gave it everything,” he said.
“You can never be satisfied, we exist to keep moving forward but I’m happy with what we’re doing and the steps we’re taking.”
Mercedes team chief Toto Wolff admitted his world champion team is making steady qualifying improvements.
“I’m not sure we had the fastest car but we have improved a lot,” he said. “We are catching up (to Red Bull) in qualifying, we are maybe at the same level, and I think we have a good car for racing.”
Bottas has the perfect opportunity to steal his first win of the season.Source:AFP
Hamilton narrowly leads the 2021 championship after he won the opener in Bahrain before Dutch rival Verstappen hit back at Imola.
“Third is of course not what we wanted but it’s not too bad after I had a Q3 lap time deleted, which would actually have put us fastest,” said Verstappen.
“We struggled with the balance in Q1 and Q2 because of the track surface, and everyone is chasing grip, but we got to a decent level in Q3 so I don’t think we are too far off.”
Bottas’ last outing at Imola was one to forget as he and Williams driver George Russell collided at 300km/h. Both cars were wrecked that day and Russell was furious with the Finn before the pair continued their clash off the track with a bitter war of words.
Russell will start on the sixth row with Pierre Gasly, in an AlphaTauri, and four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel, in an Aston Martin, ahead of him.
“It’s our best qualifying position in three years so I’m really proud,” said Russell. “We all have our responsibilities, and as a team we did a really good job.
“Tomorrow we’ve got to keep moving forward. We have a good race car — it’s fast on the straights, so let’s see what we can do.”
The Haas pair of Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin start at the back.
Portuguese Grand Prix Qualifying: Top 10
1) Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes
2) Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
3) Max Verstappen, Red Bull
4) Sergio Perez, Red Bull
5) Carlos Sainz, Ferrari
6) Esteban Ocon, Alpine
7) Lando Norris, McLaren
8) Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
9) Pierre Gasly, AlphaTauri
10) Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin
With AFP
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