Ricciardo feeling “more positive” after finishing 12th in Dutch GP

Daniel Ricciardo was happy with his performance in the Netherlands after climbing from 14th on the grid to 12th at the chequered flag.

The Australian was five places ahead of his RB team-mate Yuki Tsunoda, who started 11th but faded to 17th.

The result marked a sharp turnaround for Ricciardo after a disappointing showing in qualifying left him 16th and the first high-profile casualty of the qualifying hour.

Following the race, the eight-time race winner suggested he bounced back from that display well and delivered an encouraging performance.

“I think actually it was a good race,” Ricciardo said of his Dutch GP.

“My frustration and that yesterday was, I think, ultimately more in myself than anything.

“Yes, we could have done a bit more in hindsight with the car, maybe made some bigger changes from the first to second set of tyres to help a bit with my feeling.

“But at the end of the day, it's tricky for everyone.

“Everyone was having difficulties so at some point you've got to just try and make it work.

“Deep down, I was just disappointed that I didn't make it work.”

Ricciardo completed three runs during Qualifying 1 on Saturday, only to miss the cut at the end of Qualifying 1.

On the grid, he started 15th because Alex Albon was excluded after his car failed post-session scrutineering.

Even still, passing remains difficult around Zandvoort with Ricciardo's lowly starting position a significant role in his final result – especially after a race that failed to see even a single yellow flag.

“Honestly, I was happy with the race. I think just [Pierre] Gasly was really strong this weekend,” Ricciardo noted.

“And [Fernando] Alonso was quick, but I was there, right behind [Lance] Stroll.

“If we're fighting an Aston, we know we're kind of doing okay.

“Wasn't good enough for points, but I think we actually had a strong race,” he added.

“I leave more positive than I did yesterday. I wasn't like yesterday was a crisis, it was just some internal frustration.

“You want to start the second half of the season on point, and I felt like I didn't start the way I'd envisioned.

“But today, we picked up some of the pieces.”