16/07/2020
NEWS STORY
Having foiled an earlier attempt from the Canadian, on the penultimate lap, while battling for sixth, with Lando Norris running close behind, Stroll made a lunge on Ricciardo in Turn 3 that saw the Racing Point driver overdo it and run wide, forcing the Renault even further off track.
Rejoining the track, having almost collected Norris, Stroll now had sixth while Ricciardo dropped to eighth.
While the stewards deemed it a racing incident, Ricciardo was not amused, stating that Stroll's move was "desperate".
"He didn't really get past," said the Australian. "He forced both of us off the track.
"I'll be always critical of myself," he added, "I should have closed the door but I don't think he was ever making the move. If he pushes me off, but he stays on the track, fair enough, then I definitely should have blocked... but if he takes both of us off it's not a move.
"I'm turning out of the apex to avoid a crash. I should have hugged the white line and blocked from earlier but it was a move he was never making. I think it was desperate, Lando was coming and I think he had to do something as Lando was going to eat him up, so but yeah I take the apex and we crash.
"A frustrating end," he added. "It's a shame to end the race like that."
Speaking in Hungary today, Ricciardo's view of the incident hadn't changed and as a result he is to raise the issue at tomorrow's driver briefing with his colleagues.
"I have never wanted to have rules so tight it discourages us to race," he said. "I don't want it that we're driving on eggshells and scared to pull the trigger, but there's trying and also failing.
"Both of us went off track," he continued. "If I turn in, we crash but he also brought himself off track with us. He tried a move, which he was completely in his right to do. I left room, which I guess I shouldn't have. But he tried and because we both went off, I see that as a failed attempt, so the position should have been given back.
"For me, I think that's pretty crystal clear. If he made the corner and squeezed me off, I accept that that is a move. But to take both of us off, I don't see how that works in any situation.
"We'll talk about it in the drivers briefing and see everyone's opinion, what they say. I can't see any drivers saying that's a clean move, that's how it's going to work, because it never adds up like that."
The Australian however was keen to make clear that this isn't about Stroll necessarily, but how the stewards approach such incidents.
"I don't think it was Lance's intention to take both of us off," he said. "I'm sure when he went down the inside, I'm sure he knew it would be tight because it was already quite narrow and he came from a fair way back. But I don't think he expected or wanted both of us to go off track.
"Obviously he kept his foot into it, and said 'alright if I get penalty OK, if I don't I'll claim a move'. I don't think it is necessarily something to discuss with a driver, as in ‘that was a dirty move, what were you thinking?'
"It's more that this needs to be spoken to as a group with us drivers and stewards together to try and educate everyone as to what is right and wrong.
"I don't expect Lance for example to go and do it this weekend and think he's going to get away with it every time. That's why we need to talk probably Friday in the drivers' briefing."
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