F1 News
Herbert shocked: "We never expected him to struggle so much"
- GPblog.com
Johnny Herbert thinks that Daniel Ricciardo has suddenly lost his talent. The McLaren driver started the season very poorly, but knows more and more good results at his new team.
Poor first half of 2021
Ricciardo switched last winter from Renault to McLaren. There he is the teammate of the well performing Lando Norris. The young Briton has shown race after race that this year's McLaren MCL35M is a fine car to run on the podium every now and then. Ricciardo on the other hand is struggling to put down strong performances. Especially before the summer break the results were disappointing.
Despite Ricciardo picking up the pace after the summer break and even managing to win the Italian Grand Prix to everyone's surprise, Herbert is critical of the Australian. "Daniel on the other hand has been a shocker," says the Briton in conversation with Motorsport Magazine.
Talent lost for good
"We never expected him to struggle so much. I can empathise with him and it’s terrible, especially when it’s been so long and you still haven’t found the answer. Still, we know how good he is and he knows it too," Herbert continued.
According to Herbert, a driver's talent can suddenly evaporate for no logical reason. He thinks this could also be the case with Ricciardo. "If it’s already causing us headaches, think what it’s like for him. But what’s happened? He’s not too old, he hasn’t had a bad crash. There have been plenty of drivers for whom it [their talent] just evaporated," Herbert concludes.