Daniel Ricciardo makes brutally honest admission amid poor Formula One season… but Australian Grand Prix offers glimmer of hope

Daniel Ricciardo has raised hopes of a turnaround in performance after admitting disappointment with his start to the Formula 1 season.

Ricciardo, 34, started the Australian Grand Prix from P18 but climbed six places to finish 12th and was pleased with his pace at his home race.

“I felt like I wanted to put aside the frustration for today,” Ricciardo said after the race. “I kind of knew what was done and tried to make the most of today.

‘It’s nice that there were moments in the race where I had some speed and was able to show: ‘Okay, I can still do some good stints there’. It was still good to get the laps.”

Ricciardo entered the race at Albert Park feeling the pressure, with Red Bull chief Helmut Marko publicly calling for better performances from the Australian.

But his performance in the Australian Grand Prix gives reasons to be optimistic

He finished 13th in Bahrain and 16th in Jeddah but insists he has not lost faith in his ability to rediscover his mojo.

“I absolutely believe I can do it,” he said. ‘I wouldn’t say there is panic. I would have liked this season to have started better, but we’ll keep digging.”

He added: “It’s not like we changed everything and suddenly this car suits Yuki (Tsunoda) and not me. I certainly don’t feel like it’s anything like that.

‘I think we’ll find something. I thought it would be this weekend. Maybe it’s the next one, and if it’s not the next one, we’ll keep going until it happens.

‘It will happen.’

Christian Horner said of Ricciardo’s form: ‘He’s a big boy, he’ll pick himself up.

‘F1 for a driver can be lonely, so a little encouragement never hurts.’