Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies has apologized for not providing Daniel Ricciardo with a car capable of maximizing his potential, leading to his mid-season replacement by Liam Lawson. Ralf Schumacher believes Lawson has a chance to prove himself alongside Max Verstappen.
Daniel Ricciardo started the year in Red Bull ’s junior team VCARB but was sacked mid-season for New Zealander Liam Lawson , who not only replaced the Aussie but last week got his first points in Formula 1 . RB team principal Laurent Mekies has come out this week, effectively apologising for not having the car in the “sweet spot” to maximise Ricciardo’s talents.
“The question we have been asked the most was: ‘Can Daniel still produce the ultimate speed we have seen?’ I think he has on a few occasions, in Miami, in Canada and in quite a few other races. So, he did produce that ultimate speed that took him to race wins in the past. “But for the team, as for the drivers, the biggest difficulty is not to be fast one day. It’s to be fast in every race. Did we manage to keep Daniel in that sweet spot often enough? No, that’s the reality. “I raised my hand and we raised our hands as a team, because we have a big part to play in it. And this led to what happened.” Daniel Ricciardo’s team is taking responsibility for the car not being up to scratch. Ralf Schumacher believes Lawson will “will get half a season” to prove himself alongside Verstappen. Hopefully for the Kiwi’s sake he can rise to the challenge and not join the list of Verstappen’s ex-teammates (Sergio Perez, Alex Albon, Pierre Gasly, Ricciardo).“It never crossed my mind that I wanted to be proven right. It got a lot of reaction, a lot of negative and some positive. “It got a lot of people discussing the subject openly. It’s not a question of destroying someone but you have to look at reality. I think people realised ‘Okay, Jacques has a fair point, let’s discuss it in depth’ and that happened. That’s what I’m happy about. “My feelings wouldn’t be any different if Daniel Ricciardo stayed at Red Bull. I’m not saying “Oh, I’m happy now he’s left F1.’ I’m just glad to have brought reality to the for
Red Bull Daniel Ricciardo Liam Lawson Max Verstappen Formula 1
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