09/06/2024
NEWS STORY
Daniel Ricciardo: "It was a good weekend from the start, considering all conditions, and with a crazy race like that, I'm happy to finish it with some points in the bag.
"I got a penalty for a jump start, but I was a bit confused because I knew that I didn't jump the lights but then I remembered that during the start I felt that maybe the car was moving. We had a bit of an issue with the car, and we'll have a look at it, but obviously, this was a backstep for our race. When we pitted for the Inters, we lost a few positions to the cars that stayed out and weren't really able to get much more out of the new tyres. We jumped out of the point-scoring positions, and the race was kind of getting away from us, but as the track dried towards the end and we were on mediums, I was able to pick my way through a few cars back into the top 10 which was a little bit of a relief. I'm happy it was a fairly smooth weekend for us, and obviously for increasing the gap to the midfield behind us."
Yuki Tsunoda: "Today was my mistake, a stupid move, and I'm sorry to the team. They definitely made the right decision about strategy and did a good job; it wasn't easy on the old Inters but I was feeling okay. Also, the call when to change to dry tyres was good. At least I turned it around from Free Practice to qualifying and that's good, but today's disappointing and not the way I should've finished the race. It was just about bringing it home."
Guillaume Dezoteux (Head of Vehicle Performance): "Overall, it was a positive race and another four points in the fight for the constructor championship. Daniel started by getting a penalty as he slightly moved on the starting grid before the lights went off. He did follow the procedure correctly, so it looks like it's on the car side, likely some slight clutch drag pushing the car forward a few centimetres. The first stint on Intermediate tyres was difficult with very low grip and bad visibility. We decided to serve the penalty during the Safety Car period. After the second rain shower, the track dried up quickly and we reacted at the right time to switch to medium tyres. From there, Daniel drove consistently and managed to overtake Ocon for eighth behind both Aston Martin cars. Yuki had an eventful race too. During the Safety Car period, we decided to leave him out as our Intermediate tyres were looking good and he gained three positions. Towards the middle of the race, he was P7 matching Alonso's pace in front of him. Unfortunately, in the last part of the race after the second Safety Car period, Yuki had some moments and finished outside the points. It was a difficult race for everyone today but overall, a positive weekend for the team."
Laurent Mekies (Team Principal): "The Canadian Grand Prix is always one of the toughest events of the year, even without the added pitfalls thrown up by the rain and so to score a few points here is an achievement, even if, based on our grid positions and where we were on track until just a few laps from the end, we could have hoped for more. The penalty for Daniel at the start, due to some very slight clutch dragging, and a couple of moments on track for Yuki cost us a few points but there are a lot of positives from this weekend: The drivers and the team are really working well together as a solid unit at the track, while back in the factory the efforts of our staff have been equally rewarding and indeed rewarded with both cars in Q3 yet again and points today. Daniel spoke about the fact that Saturday was the tenth anniversary to the exact day of his very first F1 win which came at this track and it seems that he likes the place, as seen by his spectacular fifth place in quali and P8 in the race! Also on Saturday, we announced that Yuki is staying with us for another year. It is well-deserved and it is also very good for him and us to know so early in the season that this matter is not something we have to think about anymore. Yuki also did a great recovery this weekend after a complicated Friday and would have deserved some good points too. We need to continue with our approach of small steps one after the other, in every single area. It is moving us race after race towards better positions, and everyone in Faenza and in Bicester is pushing extremely hard to bring some more performance to our car."