**Ricciardo Apologizes to Hulkenberg After Lap-One Clash at the Italian GP: A Race Marred by Penalties and Frustration for RB**

Daniel Ricciardo reflects on the collision with Nico Hulkenberg: “I believed there was enough room; I have apologized”

Daniel Ricciardo comments on the incident involving Haas during the F1 Italian Grand Prix

Daniel Ricciardo stated that he apologized to Nico Hulkenberg after they were involved in a crash on the first lap of the Formula 1 Italian Grand Prix.

Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo clashed with Nico Hulkenberg while competing in the midfield during the first lap of the Monza race on Sunday, specifically at Turn 8.

Ricciardo mentioned he believed he had enough room, but then experienced a collision – leading to Hulkenberg’s Haas being pushed onto the dirt and losing a position to his teammate Kevin Magnussen.

The Australian driver received a five-second penalty for the incident, but later had to serve a 10-second penalty because one of his mechanics touched his car while he was serving the initial penalty during his pit stop.

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

"In the end, we lacked speed today, even disregarding the penalties," he stated.

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

"After the race, I had a conversation with him. I believed we had enough space, but I felt the collision, which means I didn't leave sufficient room. I apologized for that."

"It's challenging because you push yourself to the limit, yet even the tiniest differences can have a significant impact."

"The vehicle performed satisfactorily afterward, and we exerted maximum effort given our resources. From Friday afternoon until today, I aimed to extract the utmost potential from the car."

"I personally feel much improved this weekend, and we were nearly able to earn some points."

Tsunoda Felt Disappointed

The Italian Grand Prix for Red Bull was heavily influenced by Nico Hulkenberg, stated team member Laurent Mekies. A crash involving Hulkenberg and Yuki Tsunoda brought an early end to the Japanese driver's race.

"I'm quite disappointed; it's unfortunate that my race ended just a few laps in because of a collision with Nico," Tsunoda remarked.

"I attempted to give him ample room, but it appeared he froze up, resulting in him losing control and colliding with me."

“Regrettably, we had to withdraw the car from the race due to floor damage.”

"I noticed it immediately and attempted to keep going, but the vehicle was skidding, making it impossible for me to drive."

"Up next are the races in Baku and Singapore. Our car is expected to do well at these locations, so we're optimistic about having successful weekends."

Mekies is frustrated with the Tsunoda incident because it caused him to lose important track time with the updated RB car that was brought to Monza.

"Commenting on today's race, it can be said that Hulkenberg set the pace. Daniel received a five-second penalty for pushing him off the track. Subsequently, Nico collided with Yuki, which ultimately forced us to retire the car," he stated.

"The most disappointing part of Yuki's retirement is that we missed out on 40 laps that could have enhanced our knowledge of the new updates we brought in."

"Daniel was given an additional 10-second penalty due to an error in carrying out the initial one."

"We need to examine our processes in this situation and take lessons from today's error. Although these incidents occur, our pit crew has typically performed outstandingly this season."

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