Talk the track
The time for words – finally – is almost over and soon only the stopwatch will do the talking. Daniel Ricciardo is approaching the Hungarian GP weekend aware that all eyes are on him and with the need to demonstrate that he has rediscovered the speed that had made him one of the most popular drivers in the Circus at the time of Red Bull and which, however, he seemed to have lost in his last season in McLaren. The return of the Australian as owner, at the wheel of the ‘derelict’ AlphaTauri, risks becoming the definitive sliding door of his career.
Balance and fun
However, in presenting the away match in Budapest, Ricciardo did not seem to want to give too much space to fears and worries, emphasizing above all the joy for the return to the races after six months of stop. Clearly its result will depend a lot on what will be theadaptation to AT04. From this point of view, however, the Perth driver tried to show optimism: “When I drove for Red Bull in the Pirelli test at Silverstone last week it all felt very normal. The AlphaTauri car will be what it is. I will drive it and work from there. I don’t want to have too many preconceived ideas – commented the #3 – If the car is balanced, I can work with it. It will be quite a challenge to get on track and start working, but I can’t wait to do it”.
“I’m looking forward to developing the car and putting my experience to good use – Ricciardo added again, underlining how he did not set any concrete goals for the Hungarian race, at least in terms of final placement – for Budapest it will be enough to go on the track and have fun, try to use the right foot more than the left. The key to this track is picking up the pace. If the car is balanced, you can have fun“. Ricciardo was also welcomed by his new teammate, Yuki Tsunodawho said he was eager to be able to “learn” by the Australian veteran.
Tsunoda ready to learn
“I will have the advantage of having a very good and experienced driver as a teammate – commented Tsunoda – I’m sure I can learn a lot from him and I also expect him to be able to bring something to the team and progress the development of the car.”. The Japanese did not fail to turn a thought to the unfortunate De Vries – “he had a lot of experience in other categories and gave the team good feedback based on his knowledge. I enjoyed being with him” – also foretelling new upgrades just for this weekend: “We have made further updates for the race in Hungary, in addition to the ones we carried over to the last race“, concluded Tsunoda.
#Ricciardo #ready #debut #fun #Budapest