Ricciardo prepared for ‘long slog’ back to form

Daniel Ricciardo has prepared himself for a long road ahead at McLaren if they are to get back on the pace of their rivals this season.

Team principal Andreas Seidl has admitted Ricciardo and Lando Norris both deserve to drive a better car than what is underneath them at the moment, having lagged behind in Bahrain.

While they improved their position somewhat in Saudi Arabia, Norris pointed out the car has yet to make many improvements, attributing his points finish partially to the Jeddah layout suiting their car better than Sakhir.

Having been on a steady upward trajectory in the past few seasons, the start of 2022 has been something of a crash back down to earth for McLaren, who are looking to change their fortunes as soon as possible.

Ricciardo is trying to remain relaxed about the situation, with he and Norris working together to bring the team forward as quickly as they can, and he wants to remain pragmatic about the time it will take to claw back the deficit to those around them.

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Which @DanielRicciardo are you?

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— McLaren (@McLarenF1) April 2, 2022

“Yeah, I think so, and I think you have to be mentally,” Ricciardo told Motorsport.com when asked if he is prepared for a long slog ahead.

“If in two races’ time we are fighting for top five then okay, we’ll take it and that’s a bonus.

“But I think mentally to remain, let’s say, calm and chilled and