- Russian GP - FP2
Ricciardo prepared for damage limitation
Daniel Ricciardo thinks Red Bull needs to focus solely on its race set-up in Russia after being off the pace in the first practice sessions at the Sochi Autodrom.
Ricciardo was 12th and 13th in Friday sessions, though team-mate Sebastian Vettel rose to as high as ninth in the latter. With over half the lap spent with open throttle the circuit does not play into the strengths of the Renault-powered Red Bull, something Ricciardo thinks the team should remember when considering its approach to the rest of the weekend.
"We're definitely further down than we would like at the moment," Ricciardo said. "It depends what we can challenge for at the moment. A win is out of the question. I think it will be a bit like Monza, probably at this stage just damage limitation and aim for the top five - we've got a bit of work ahead of us."
Having struggled to find the pace on Friday Ricciardo is bracing himself for a tough race, though he thinks Red Bull's set-up could be key for a strong race result.
"There's definitely enough straights to have a go, it shouldn't be follow the leader. We're a bit in limbo really at the moment because we don't know really where to go, we need to find some straight-line speed so we can at least attack in the race. It doesn't look like we'll be on pole at the moment so I think we need to set up for Sunday.
"We're definitely further off than we expected. It's tough, we're lacking in both areas, to be honest - we tried a bit more downforce, tried a bit less, but didn't really find an answer. We'll have a look tonight as always and see if there's something else we can adjust."
Ricciardo had a late stoppage in FP2, which briefly brought out red flags, but he says this was an older engine and will have no bearing on the rest of the weekend.
"It was our last Friday with that engine, so it's not a worry that she turned off at the end there. We tried a few settings and we're not so fast here, the straights are long and we're suffering a bit."
© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
