Daniel Ricciardo asked for a new chassis recently to find out the problem behind his under-par results – him or the car. Paying heed to his request, RB will provide him with a brand-new chassis for the Chinese GP. However, Marc Priestley believes the demand had nothing to do with performance, as it is something drivers usually resort to when they fail.
Priestley, from his immense experience in Formula 1, revealed that such efforts often turn out to be a failure and do not have any bright outcome. However, the upside to it is that it helps the drivers psychologically.
In his recent video on YouTube, Priestley said, “Drivers who are a total loss as to why they are unable to perform get the best out of the car and the chassis, is one of the very final things you can turn to when all else is lost when there’s no other answer to your questions.”
Following this, he added, how this can psychologically help a driver. He said, “If the driver believes he’s not got something different, and the thing that was hampering may well have been the previous chassis. Well, that little psychological change could be enough to change his fortunes.”
However, RB cannot rely on just the chassis change to turn the Australian driver’s fortunes. The 8-time race winner needs to use his years of experience to figure out a solution and at least get on par with his teammate Yuki Tsunoda.
Ricciardo has had a lackluster start to his season in 2024. He has not only failed to live up to expectations but also lost out against Yuki Tsunoda on every occasion [except in Bahrain due to team orders]. Meanwhile, Tsunoda has exceeded expectations by claiming points for the team at the Australian and Japanese GP weekends.
How did Daniel Ricciardo trap himself in quicksand?
Daniel Ricciardo began his season aiming for his ultimate fairytale dream – the Red Bull seat of Sergio Perez. All he had to do was to perform regularly and outclass his teammate. However, in reality, it turned out to be the opposite.
The Honey Badger delivered back-to-back underwhelming performances. Is it the pressure of the Red Bull seat got the better of him? For now, Ricciardo denies thinking so far into the future. Although, the situation has turned so worse that his RB seat has come into jeopardy.
The 34-year-old suffered something similar during his McLaren stint back in 2022. Back then, his struggles looked never-ending and his then-teammate Lando Norris outperformed him in all aspects. Eventually, this left the Aussie driver without a seat for 2023.
As things stand, Daniel Ricciardo needs to step up soon if he has to retain the RB seat and stay on the grid. Otherwise, the Red Bull fraternity is likely to choose Liam Lawson, Red Bull and VCARB’s reserve driver who’s waiting in the wings, for the opportunity.
