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Ricciardo challenges Toro Rosso to find consistency

Daniel Ricciardo: "I was angry because I knew the car had more potential and we just weren't using it" © Getty Images

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• Race:
• Spanish Grand Prix

• Drivers:
• Daniel Ricciardo

• Teams:
• Toro Rosso

Daniel Ricciardo says Toro Rosso has a very small window in which its car is "really quick", and has challenged the team to find the pace more consistently.

Having started outside the top ten in the Spanish Grand Prix, Ricciardo made progress through the field and was running as high as sixth place at one point. However, in the final stint he was left to fend off Esteban Gutierrez for tenth place and Ricciardo said his fluctuating race had shown just how sensitive the car is at present.

"What we've learned over the last few races is that there's a window in which our car is quick - really quick - but that window is very small," Ricciardo said in his Toro Rosso blog. "In the middle of the race we got into the window but at the beginning and the end we weren't quite there. The task in front of us is to understand more about what the car likes and doesn't like. That will allow us at least to get into the window more often - but hopefully make it bigger, with the car working across a wider range of conditions."

Ricciardo even admitted to being angry with the inconsistency in his car's pace during the race in Spain on Sunday.

"Coming away from the Circuit de Catalunya I'm pleased that the race finished with the reward of a point but slightly disappointed also, because I think the car has the pace to finish higher - if we can only figure out how to extract it.

"The race suggested that we're nearly there but not quite. In the beginning I thought we were nowhere. I wasn't happy with the balance of the car in that first stint- in fact I was angry because I knew the car had more potential and we just weren't using it. Then, the next two stints were really good. The car started working better; I was passing people instead of being passed. At that point I thought we were looking like scoring quite heavily. Then on the last two stints the pace dropped away again and we had to really scramble to hold on to 10th."

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