"I just have to keep my head on a swivel" - Daniel Ricciardo hoping to bounce back from a disappointing qualifying at the F1 Bahrain GP

Daniel Ricciardo is positive RB can fight for points at the Bahrain GP. Speaking to Sportskeeda after the qualifying session in Bahrain, the Australian felt that their race simulations showed they had more potential to move further up the grid in the race.

After the free practice sessions, it was clear from RB’s race simulation data that they were at the front of the mid-field. Potentially in a battle with his former team McLaren, Daniel Ricciardo could finish further up the grid from the 14th place he qualified for.

The 34-year-old believes that the grid is close and he does expect the likes of Nico Hulkenberg in Haas to fall behind, as per their performance in 2023. However, the Honey Badger was positive that the first race could be unpredictable and with an improved car in 2024, one could expect a better result from him.

Asked by Sportskeeda on how confident he is about a points finish after viewing their race simulation data, Daniel Ricciardo replied:

“I'm confident to be better than what I qualified today. I mean, if that, we'll see. I mean, obviously, like Nico did a really good job today, and if you look at, obviously I'm not saying this is last year. But if you look at last year, they normally struggle a bit, more on race days. So if that's the same trend, then maybe yeah, that's one car we can potentially fight.

"And McLaren, I think, are quick and we weren't too bad in the long runs as you mentioned. So there's some optimism that we could kind of maybe shuffle our way towards the front. And it's a first race. Anything can happen as well. Like some people might be excited, some people might be nervous some people might be OMG. Yeah so you never know. I just have to keep my head on a swivel and the rest will follow.”

On his optimism about the race ahead, Ricciardo added:

“Yeah, I definitely think we can still do it. I think, as you said, like everything's close so there's a lot to play for I think you just have that extra 10th or two in the race and manage the tires better then you can definitely be fighting in the points. So I’ll shake off tonight and in about 60, 90 minutes, I'll feel better and get get ready for tomorrow and excited to race again definitely I mean quali was fun. It's obviously intense and you get those, those kind of nerves again. But yeah, looking forward to the race as well.”

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Daniel Ricciardo is not pessimistic despite his qualifying result ahead of the 2024 Bahrain GP

Daniel Ricciardo felt disappointed with his performance but is optimistic about the race ahead. The RB driver claimed he was never able to string a clean lap together in qualifying. He believes his performance throughout the session was a bit inconsistent.

However, he feels that they are not too worried going into the race about performance. The former Red Bull Racing driver qualified 14th and got out-qualified by his teammate Yuki Tsunoda. However, Daniel Ricciardo believes there is potential in their car and enough to be optimistic about.

Asked if he was disappointed with his qualifying result, Daniel Ricciardo spoke to media including Sportskeeda saying:

“I was disappointed in my I would say my position /performance. I think it wasn't, I say that, like it wasn't, I didn't drive shit or anything. But there was just some, I never really crossed the line being like, yeah, I did a clean lap, you know. That was always, I know I can make time in turn while one or you know turn four or there was always like some parts on the track where. I knew there was lap time. But I never really was able to put it together you know even if I improved a little bit then I'll probably lose a bit in the next corner so it kind of seesawed a bit.”

“I was never progressively kind of gaining. So I felt like from that point of view my session wasn't I wasn't that happy with my session. I think in terms of team and performance, this is kind of where we thought you know obviously where okay I feel like there's a bit more time on the table but taking Yuki in 11th kind of we felt like if we do like a great lap Q3 is possible but otherwise.”

Summarizing the session and looking forward to the race, Daniel Ricciardo added:

“We're probably around that top 12 area so I think it's where we are for now we expected a little bit of a steady start to the year. So it's not I wouldn't say we're disappointed. I'm a bit disappointed in my session but I think as a whole we're not like worried or panicked."

"I think it's where we thought would ultimately be. That’s yeah I just I'm disappointed, I couldn't find those extra a couple tenths. .. I think on, as you say, looking at the times, it's all very close and yeah, there's a lot to still be quite optimistic about.”

Daniel Ricciardo completed 210 laps in preseason testing and was the fifth fastest driver in the sessions for two days in a row. Starting the 2024 Bahrain GP weekend at the top of the timesheets in FP1, the Australian is optimistic about their car’s potential for the season ahead.

However, his future in the sport depends on him consistently beating his teammate or performing at a competitive level on the majority of weekends this season. The former Red Bull Racing driver is speculated to be one of the frontrunners for his old seat for the 2025 season, the caveat being his results in 2024.