Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Daniel Ricciardo claims he’s ‘frustrated’ after disappointing Suzuka qualifying in comparison to Yuki Tsunoda

Originally posted on FirstSportz | By Manmayee Joshi | Last updated 4/6/24

Up until this point, Daniel Ricciardo has failed to perform in any of the three races this year. Inexplicably, the Australian driver can’t seem to shake his slump. Ricciardo is frustrated as, during the Australian GP, his 23-year-old teammate, Yuki Tsnunoda scored points for the team, which only made matters more difficult.

If that wasn’t enough of a salt rub on his wounds, Tsunoda yet again beat Ricciardo during the Japanese GP qualifying session, pushing him out of Q3. Ricciardo missed out just by 0.055 secs, which was perhaps awfully painful for the Australian driver.

While talking about his tough outing, he had the following to say.

When I could see on the board I was 10th, I knew there were a couple of cars to come. So it was close and that's frustrating, but it's also encouraging because it has been, certainly, for whatever reason, a tricky start to the year. Daniel Ricciardo said: racingnews365

Daniel Ricciardo’s poor performance puts him in an extremely difficult position. If he fails to perform in the upcoming races, history might repeat itself and he might get replaced by Red Bulls reserve driver, Liam Lawson. In order to compete for the 2025 Red Bull seat, Ricciardo will need to step up his game.

Daniel Ricciardo maintains an optimistic attitude ahead of the race

As mentioned earlier, Daniel Ricciardo missed out on Q3 at the qualifying in Suzuka. Getting beaten by Yuki Tsunoda once again is not an ideal situation. Despite the adversities, the Australian driver has decided to have an optimistic outlook.

The 34-year-old will start the Japanese Grand Prix from P11.

For the race, I actually feel quite good. I haven't really done a long run, but I'm trying to keep it positive. My engineer, I could feel he felt like me, but he was also trying to be realistic and appreciate that we actually did quite a good session. Daniel Ricciardo via: racingnews365

Daniel Ricciardo has struggled in his VCARB 01 since the start of the season. The upcoming races are his chance to prove to the team his place and potential. Several people will have their eyes glued on the exploits of Ricciardo during tomorrow’s race for varied reasons.

This article first appeared on FirstSportz and was syndicated with permission.

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