Daniel Ricciardo pinpoints the ‘big downfall’ as Red Bull rumours continue

Daniel Ricciardo believes a lack of consistency can be “a big downfall” amidst rumours this could be his last season on the grid.

Although Ricciardo was handed a reprieve by Red Bull earlier this week when the team confirmed he will continue with VCARB after the summer break, his long-term future is by no means secure.

Daniel Ricciardo: In this sport that could be a big downfall

Two months ago Red Bull confirmed his team-mate Yuki Tsunoda would continue with VCARB next season but no mention was made of the Honey Badger.

Instead, he was hounded by rumours that he could lose his race seat when F1 pauses for the summer break, potentially replaced by reserve driver Liam Lawson.

But with Red Bull confirming Ricciardo will stay put, at least for now, the Aussie concedes he needs to be more consistent if he wants a shot at holding onto his race seat for next season.

Ricciardo, whose biggest points haul this season was his P4 at the Miami Sprint, has managed just three Grand Prix top ten results to Tsunoda’s seven.

“What I haven’t done well, I would say, is probably just put it under the consistency bracket,” he told RacingNews365.

“Sometimes it’s knowing, sometimes it’s still a bit unknown, but we haven’t been able to just be that consistent Q3 guy, or get the points every weekend.

“So that’s where I haven’t done well – week in week out – and in this sport that could be a big downfall.”

But even adding that there have been moments he has done “particularly well”, he concedes: “I’m not saying that’s enough.

“But I do put quite a lot of weight on that, especially at this point in my career when people are asking, ‘Does he still have it,? Is he getting on a bit?'”

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Daniel Ricciardo: I’ve just got to sort my sh*t out

At 35, Ricciardo is one of the oldest drivers on the grid but he reckons, like Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso, he’s “still got it”.

He just needs to show that more in the remaining 10 races of the season as Red Bull contemplate their second drivers for both Red Bull Racing and VCARB.

“They [Hamilton and Alonso] have proven you can still do it at an older age,” he insisted.

“At least the big results have been big enough where people then say, ‘Oh, he can still put a good lap together’, or, ‘He can put a very, very good lap together’.

“I guess what I’m trying to say is, fortunately, the stopwatch can still be a very good one, and for whatever reason, the consistency hasn’t been there, so I’ve got to sort that part out.

“But what I’m happy about is I’ve still got it, and it’s just up to me to show it more often.

“But I think the ‘it’ factor, when people question that, at least more than once, I’ve been able to say, ‘Okay, I can do it’.

“I’ve just got to sort my sh*t out.”

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