Some days it doesn't pay to get out of bed Daniel at Monza "The race started as bad as it could, for some reason the car went into anti-stall, jammed in third gear and then the engine switched off. I couldn't get restarted and had to get the car back into the box. The mechanics got it going again and I was back on track but the engine temperature rose and they called me back to check it and it took us a few more minutes until we could rejoin the race. I went straight into a bit of traffic which made it hard to get a bit of rhythm. But at least in the second stint at the end of the race I was able to get in quite a few good laps and we got some data out of that. A little bit is better than nothing but I need to keep pushing for a better result in Singapore."
Ending on a high note! Daniel Ricciardo bowed out of the Formula Renault 3.5 Series with a second place finish at the Paul Ricard circuit in France today, in round 15 of 2011. It was his final race in the F1 feeder series. The Perth born racer will miss the last round of the FR3.5 season in Barcelona next month, when he races in the Japanese Formula 1 Grand Prix.
Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne will race for the Toro Rosso team in the 2012 Formula 1 season, the team has announced. .... Tost was thankful to Buemi and Alguersuari, but said it was Toro Rosso's duty to give new drivers a chance in Formula 1. The duo had been with the team since the 2009 season. "I must also thank Sebastien Buemi and Jaime Alguersuari for all their hard work over the past three seasons," added Tost. "They have delivered some excellent performances which have helped the team move forward and develop. We wish them well for the future. "However, one has to remember that when Scuderia Toro Rosso was established in 2005, it was done so with the intention of providing a first step into Formula 1 for the youngsters in the Red Bull Junior Driver programme. "It is therefore part of the team's culture to change its driver line-up from time to time in order to achieve this goal." .... The full story; http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/96745
He's in a tenuous position, if he doesn't excel some kid doing karting this year will have his seat before 2014! Red Bull are notoriously tough taskmasters and no excuses accepted. D.R. is good, sure enough, but his overlay against Liuzzi looked pretty average this year. I went to a couple of Renault 3.5 races & reckon Vergne is going to give him a lot to chew on. I actually thought the 2011 Toro Rosso pairing was strong and close, but one has to accept the RBR philosophy to keep bringing the young drivers in. Its a really hard profession in terms of job security.
A thoughtful, informed and interesting post. Never mind, the thread will quickly revert to normal. Have you looked at the rest of the Aussie section lately? I'm almost missing Pap's spam.
Yes Andrew, a tough gig. But he is there, doing it. All we can hope for is that he maintains the skill and professionalism he has shown to date. No "gimmies" at this level.
In fact, I was half contemplating some irrational rant in response, so your input is welcome. Sometimes I wonder why we call this a forum. There's a lot to ignore!
And all credit to him for his achievements, all on merit. I just get a feeling sometimes that the Red Bull academy can be a kiss of death if you miss the target, for whatever reason. never mind where Seb Buemi or Jaime Algesuari end up in 2012, look back on Tonio Liuzzi, Seb Bourdais, Doornbos, Friesacher,Klien, Bernoldi. Seems the only voluntary departure was Coulthard, with Mark Webber "in the wings"
Maybe so, but all credit to Red Bull who identified Daniel's talent very early in the piece and have provided a great opportunity for him to develop. If he is good enough (and IMHO, he is), his feet will be on the podium thanks, in large part, to RB. Nooooooooooo.....................not THAT RB!
With Red Bull there are no excuses, puncture, botched pitstop, engine problem, someone else hitting you, as far as Mr Marko is concerned you are a loser. No matter how good DR is (and I believe he is) he is still going to need the luck of the Gods. Fate can be cruel. Someone else said Buemi and Alguersari can't have much to complain about, without Red Bull they would unlikely have reached F1 chance anyway, at least they had a chance.
http://www.redbull.com/cs/Satellite/en_INT/Article/Formula-One-Daniel-Ricciardo-Joins-Toro-Rosso-QA-021243137740256 http://www.redbull.com/cs/Satellite/en_INT/Video/Meet-The-Drivers-1--Daniel-021243150271140
