Only 1.2s Behind Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo Throws Cold Water On VCARB Hype

Only 1.2s Behind Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo Throws Cold Water On VCARB Hype

2024 F1 season is officially underway, with Day 1 of pre-season testing over. While the tests are no true measure of a team’s race pace, they give a rough estimation of where teams might lie in the rankings. Visa Cash App RB was amongst the top performers of Day 1, with Daniel Ricciardo securing the 4th fastest time. However, a report from PlanetF1 quotes him as he tempers down the excitement of the result.

“I know some people are quite excited about us coming into the season, but I want to play a little bit cautious because we have a decent car, but we still have a lot of work to do.”

With a new identity, the V-CARB team has made considerable improvements in their car. However, Ricciardo believes there is still much work left for them. The team’s main goal is establishing themselves as genuine challengers on the grid. As such, their goal would be to close down the gap on their ‘elder sister’ team, Red Bull.

 

Max Verstappen was comfortably in the lead at the end of Day 1 with a time of 1:31.344. Ricciardo, however, wasn’t too far behind Verstappen with a time of 1:32.599. Meaning there is a gap of merely 1.2 seconds between them. Keeping the times in mind, Ricciardo hopes to be in the upper-middle order this season. However, he remains cautious of having to improve to ensure the same consistently.

Daniel Ricciardo committed to focusing on the ‘now’

Ever since he returned to a driving seat in F1, Ricciardo has been linked with a move back to Red Bull. While the comeback remains a dream for him, it does not deviate his focus from what’s most important. For now, Ricciardo’s focus remains on two things. The first is to push V-CARB higher up the grid. To achieve this, he reckons it is necessary to produce weekends like the Mexico City GP from 2023. The other goal for Ricciardo is to establish himself further in the racing scene this year.

 

After not getting to race much last season, Ricciardo wants to make up for lost time. He wants to perform consistently well while trying to help his team score maximum points. With V-CARB trying to establish themselves as an individual identity, Ricciardo feels podiums “are a wish” now. But he hopes they can continue improving and fight at the front of the grid soon.

Post Edited By: Samriddhi Jaiswal
Daniel Ricciardo Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing Visa Cash App RB

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Naman Gopal Srivastava

Naman is an F1 writer at The SportsRush. Initially a football fanatic who worships Puyol and Leo Messi, Naman soon fell in love with the world of F1 upon reading about Jim Clarke. While the current era drivers do fascinate him, Naman still chooses to idolize Clarke and Ayrton Senna. When he is not busy watching the highlights of some of the greatest races of his idols, Naman can be found scribbling little snippets in his diary of poems or out in the town, exploring new places to eat.

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