Ricciardo: Mercedes had a bit more pace than us;
Daniel Ricciardo came close to taking the lead at the first corner. In the end, the Red Bull driver had to settle for third place on the podium.
Starting third on the grid, Daniel Ricciardo was close to surprising the two Mercedes drivers at the start by taking the inside line at the first corner. Ultimately, Hamilton stayed ahead and Rosberg regained a position against the Red Bull in the second corner.
During the first part of the race, Ricciardo was matching the pace of the Mercedes drivers, sometimes even being faster than them. “There were times when we had a competitive pace compared to Mercedes,” the Australian described after the race.
He then lost a bit of ground over the course of the first stint by focusing more on maintaining his position against Vettel, who was behind him.
Red Bull then decides to try an aggressive strategy by bringing Ricciardo in earlier than the Mercedes drivers. *I think once the first stint was set, Mercedes had a bit more pace than us. But at the start of the second stint, on the soft tires, we seemed really competitive, but in the end, I feel like the Mercedes drivers were doing what they needed to do, and their pace was getting stronger and stronger.* analyzes Ricciardo.
Unfortunately, this strategy did not pay off since both Mercedes stayed ahead after their second stops. « There were parts of the race where we thought we were [fast], but they managed to pick up the pace. We probably couldn’t have held on for 70 laps if I had been in front at the start, I don’t know. » adds the Red Bull driver.
