Ricciardo Apologizes After Hulkenberg Clash at Italian Grand Prix; Tsunoda’s Race Ends in Frustration

Daniel Ricciardo comments on collision with Nico Hulkenberg: “I believed there was enough room; I said sorry”

Daniel Ricciardo responds to the clash with a Haas car during the Italian Grand Prix in Formula 1

Daniel Ricciardo mentioned that he offered an apology to Nico Hulkenberg after the two collided on the first lap of the Formula 1 Italian Grand Prix.

During the opening lap of Sunday's race at Monza, Red Bull driver Ricciardo and Hulkenberg clashed while competing in the midfield at Turn 8.

Ricciardo mentioned that he believed there was enough room but then experienced a collision, which pushed Hulkenberg's Haas onto the dirt and allowed Kevin Magnussen, his teammate, to overtake him.

The Australian driver initially received a five-second penalty for the incident, but later had to serve a 10-second penalty because one of his mechanics touched the car during the original penalty at his pitstop.

Ricciardo finished a challenging race at his home track in 13th place for the Red Bull team.

"At the end of the day, we didn't have enough speed, even without the penalties," he stated.

"We gave it our best shot, and I was having fun with the close racing at the beginning, but I ended up colliding with Nico at Turn 8."

"After the race, I had a conversation with him. I believed there was enough space, but I felt the collision, so I realized I hadn't left enough room. I apologized to him."

"It's challenging because you put in a lot of effort, but even the tiniest differences can have a significant impact."

"The car seemed to perform well after that, and we gave it our all with the resources available. From Friday afternoon up until today, I was focused on extracting the best possible performance from the vehicle."

“I’m feeling much improved this weekend, and we came very near to earning points.”

Tsunoda 'frustrated' after incident

According to Laurent Mekies from RB, the Italian Grand Prix was heavily influenced by Nico Hulkenberg. A collision between the Haas driver and Yuki Tsunoda led to the Japanese driver’s early exit from the race.

"I'm quite upset. It's unfortunate that my race ended just a few laps after the start because of a collision with Nico," Tsunoda commented.

"I attempted to maintain ample distance, but it appeared he froze up, leading to a loss of control and a collision with me."

"Regrettably, we were forced to withdraw the car from the race due to sustaining damage to the floor."

"I noticed it immediately and attempted to keep going, but the vehicle was skidding and I just couldn't control it."

"We're heading to Baku and Singapore next, and our car is expected to do well on those tracks, so we’re optimistic about having successful weekends there."

Mekies is upset about the Tsunoda incident because it caused him to miss important track time with the newly updated RB car that was brought to Monza.

"Today's race was largely influenced by Hulkenberg's actions. Daniel received a five-second penalty for pushing him off the track. Following this, Nico collided with Yuki, which ultimately led to us having to retire the car," he explained.

"The most exasperating part of Yuki's retirement is the missed opportunity of 40 laps that could have enhanced our knowledge of the new updates we implemented here."

"Daniel was given an additional 10-second penalty because we failed to properly carry out the first penalty."

"We must reassess our protocols in such situations and take lessons from today's error. Although these incidents occur, our pit crew has mostly performed outstandingly this season."

Explore More

Recent Updates

Recent Updates

Site Map

Crash.Net

©1999-2024 Crash Media Group

Reproducing any content, whether text, photos, or illustrations, in whole or in part, is prohibited in all formats.