Daniel Ricciardo reveals race victory target for 2022 campaign

McLaren driver Daniel Ricciardo has said that he ideally wants to earn two race victories at least this season in Formula 1.

The Aussie had a tough first season with McLaren in 2021 as he took time to adapt to the car but he showed, when the chance came, that he’d lost none of his race-winning pedigree with him seizing the opportunity with both hands to take victory at the Italian Grand Prix.

He’s wanting more this year, though, with McLaren naturally hoping their performances are only going to get better after a promising double points finish in Australia last time out.

“Hopefully it will be two victories this year. Or more,” said Ricciardo, quoted by Sport Bild.

“But I’ll take it as it comes. I’ve already set goals in my head. But above all, I don’t want to go through another difficult season like 2021.

“Despite the success at Monza, it wasn’t an easy year. Looking at the results, I have to say there is still room for improvement in qualifying. That didn’t go well.

“I had never been so excited in the break and so looking forward to a new car.

“As soon as you sit in the car, everything around you looks completely different.

“You’re higher, the tyres are bigger. It’s an adjustment. The visibility is limited, but I already felt comfortable on the track. The car is much heavier, which means it is harder to control with small movements on the track.”

Ricciardo is a multi-Grand Prix winner and knows exactly how to deal with the pressures of converting a race lead into a race win.

He’ll be hoping for more opportunities to underline that in the months ahead this season, then.