F1 news: Daniel Ricciardo FUMES at 's***house’ Australian Grand Prix grid penalty
DANIEL RICCIARDO has blasted the F1 stewards for what he believes is a “s***house” grid penalty at the Australian Grand Prix despite also admitting he was in the wrong.
Daniel Ricciardo is furious with the FIA's decision to hand him a three-place grid penalty
The Red Bull driver was punished for driving too fast through sectors of the Melbourne track during a red flag in Friday’s second practice session.
But the Australian, whose hopes of winning his home race have suffered a huge blow as a result of the sanction, believes the severity of the penalty was unwarranted.
The red flag came out during Ricciardo’s qualifying simulation lap as a result of some loose wiring on the start finish line.
But though the stewards acknowledged that the 28-year-old “slowed consistently and significantly” by as much as 175kmph and “proceeded with due care”, he was still disciplined.
The penalty also means Ricciardo, whom the FIA state “admitted an error in reading his dash”, picks up two points on his FIA Super License.
Daniel Ricciardo can start no higher than fourth on the grid for Red Bull on Sunday
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Yesterday’s news has been pretty bitter for me. I’m p***ed to say the least.
Speaking to Australian outlet Channel 10, Ricciardo responded: “Is it worth a grid penalty?
“I made a mistake, no doubt about it, but is that mistake worth a grid penalty in a practice session when no car’s on track, no-one’s upside down?
"I think common sense should have prevailed. It was a cable on the track. I didn't pass the incident.
"I think it’s s***house.
“Yesterday’s news has been pretty bitter for me. I’m p***ed to say the least.”
The new rules permit a minimum time for which drivers can drive through specific parts of the circuit so that they return to the pit without endangering marshals or emergency crews out on the track.
Daniel Ricciardo in Red Bull's RB14 during practice at Albert Park
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The FIA added that their punishment was “a lesser penalty than usual” despite the breach of the regulation being viewed as “an extremely serious matter.”
Ricciardo had to abort his lap to leave him in seventh after the second session, with team-mate Max Verstappen just 0.127seconds off leader Lewis Hamilton in the Mercedes.
Ricciardo can now start no higher than fourth in Sunday’s race, with that only achievable if he runs fastest in qualifying, which takes place at Albert Park at 6am UK time on Saturday morning.
Heavy rain throughout the day could dramatically influence the make-up of the grid for the season-opening race, though Ricciardo encouraged some unpredictability.
He added: "I don’t think it will hurt. We always enjoy some wet weather.
"It kind of evens everything out. Today in the dry we didn’t look too bad, which is good. I think the wet will gives us potentially a bit more of a chance.
"The last wet qualifying we had here was 2014 and that was not too bad. Hopefully we can try and do that again."
No home driver has ever finished on the podium in 33 years of the Australian Grand Prix, with Ricciardo needing a little bit more fortune over the rest of the weekend if he is to become the first.