Ricciardo confirms rumours: 'I was almost as fast as Verstappen'

Ricciardo started 2023 as Red Bull Racing's third driver. Primarily a role in terms of marketing after his dramatic period at McLaren. The Australian wanted to take a break and not race for a year. However, the itch soon returned again. After several tests in the simulator, Ricciardo finally got a chance on the track too.

After the British Grand Prix, a Pirelli test was scheduled for Red Bull. Ricciardo was eager to return to the track again and was given the chance by Red Bull. A moment to show himself again, and he did. There were already rumours that Ricciardo was fast, now he confirms those rumours himself in the Beyond the Grid podcast.

Ricciardo almost as fast as Verstappen

After spinning on his first lap, Ricciardo came in for a new set of tyres after 10 laps. "We put FP2 fuel in the car. I'm not going to sugarcoat it. The first timed lap I did was on the money. It was a few hundredths off Max's pole time."

Verstappen drove a 1.26.720 for pole position that weekend. Sergio Perez did not make it through to Q2. The time Ricciardo set made such an impression that Marko immediately picked up the phone and said goodbye to Nyck de Vries. Ricciardo needed to return to F1 and right away.

Ricciardo with a smile back on his face

"I treated it obviously like a qualifying lap. I just had that feeling in the car and that confidence. There was elements of the car that felt so familiar. I kind of just knew what it could do and what it was capable of. Crossing the line when I looked at the time, I was like, oh, I don't know if I was expecting to go that quick."

The fact that Ricciardo drove that lap in his first attempt at a fast lap also put a smile on Christian Horner's face. The Red Bull Racing team boss is a fan of Ricciardo and hoped to see a smile back on the Australian's face with the test. In the end, the smile returned.