"1996, I think it was! It’s been a while" - Daniel Ricciardo on when he last felt comfortable in an F1 car

Daniel Ricciardo admitted it has been a while since he felt comfortable in an F1 car and the race in Mexico was the first time he was in his groove.

The race proved to be a revelation for the Australian, as he could qualify as high as the second row on the grid. Not only that, Daniel was able to put together a strong stint as well.

He finished the race in P7, but what was even more impressive was that he had little race rust on him. His performance helped AlphaTauri jump to P8 in the championship leapfrogging Haas and Alfa Romeo.

Talking about his performance on the pre-race press conference, Daniel Ricciardo felt this was the best he'd felt in the car in a long time. When questioned what was the last time he felt this comfortable in a car, Ricciardo joked:

"1996, I think it was! It’s been a while. It wasn’t like every weekend at McLaren was bad. There was some that were good but I’d probably have to go back to more… 2021 as opposed to 2022."

He further explained how the race in Mexico was the one where he felt great from start to finish. He said:

"It was a while – but I think from start to finish, that was one that, in a car that is still relatively new for me, obviously it was my fourth proper race weekend of the year, so I think to have that feeling quite early, and also just to have an understanding… already I think I have a good understanding of what I want from the car."

---

Daniel Ricciardo felt he was back to his best in Mexico

Daniel Ricciardo felt he was back to his best Mexico after the miserable run he'd had at McLaren alongside Lando Norris. The driver said that this was the first weekend where he felt confident from the beginning.

He said:

"Obviously it’s nice to have a good weekend but to just have one, in my mind, it’s not enough. But, of course, for me, to have a strong weekend from start to finish, I think spoke something. It was something that obviously I have struggled with the last year or two."

He added:

"Didn’t have many weekends like that. I think also this year was just about me, like rebuilding I guess, myself again and just trying to find, as people say, that old form or that old me. So, Mexico felt a lot like that."

Daniel Ricciardo's result also strengthens his case for a possible seat at Red Bull in place of Sergio Perez.