A costly first-lap crash ruined Ricciardo’s race
Monday, 25 April 2022
The Australian was unable to recover.
Daniel Ricciardo and his teammate Lando Norris had a strong start with the two McLaren drivers fighting at the front of the field.
However, it wasn’t to be for the Australian driver as he collided with Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz after going side-by-side into the first braking zone.
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Ricciardo could make it out of the gravel trap, although Sainz wasn’t as lucky and had to retire from the race.
From that point on, it was a matter of trying to make his way through the field, which proved difficult with no DRS.
Ricciardo climbed to P15 before being called into the pits for fresh hard tyres. The strategy didn’t work, and he went on to finish P18.
“It was a great result for Lando! However, it was one of those Sundays for me, unfortunately,” Ricciardo said.
“At Turn 1, I thought I got hit, but it was actually me getting on the kerb. I then slipped off it and went into Carlos [Sainz], before being bumped by Bottas. We had a bit of damage and struggled for the rest of the race.”
“It’s a painful one and it’s never nice to be involved in incidents. There’s not much more to say. Just one of those Sundays. We’ll celebrate Lando’s podium and learn what we can as we head to Miami.”
It wasn't @danielricciardo's day today 😓
— F1 Australian Grand Prix (@ausgrandprix) April 24, 2022
The collision on lap 1 strained the Aussie's race from progressing 💥#ImolaGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/EeIq5Vu7pK
