After a winter of downtime with family and friends, Australia’s Daniel Ricciardo says he is ready to get back to work.
With a strong 2016 season to build upon in terms of success on the track, Ricciardo has since been back in the gym with a rigorous training regime to be in shape for what promises to be a very physical 2017 season.
Speaking to the Red Bull website in a Q&A session, the ever smiling Aussie elaborates on his preparations: “Off-season was good,” he said.
“I really enjoyed some time at home – friends, family, a bit of downtime, a bit of chill. I did the first part of my training camp, my preparation for 2017, in Perth, got some real Aussie heat in me, then I’ve been based out of LA for the past few weeks.
“It’s been cool, a good change of scenery. I feel strong, I feel fit, and looking at all this stuff going on here just excites me, so I’m ready to get back into it.”
Speaking about what the focus of the training had been Ricciardo added: “We’re not training to lose weight, we’re training to put on a little bit of muscle and gain some strength, because if the cars are cornering a lot faster, the G-forces and the toll that takes on the body will be higher, so the most important thing is the strength to be able to withstand that.”
Recently, Williams’ Rob Smedley said he expects the pecking order to change in 2017 with the rate of development meant to be fierce and relentless.
When asked about his thoughts on the changes for the 2017 season, Ricciardo felt that Mercedes and Red Bull should still be at the sharp end.
“I think there will be changes but how it alters the pecking order we’ll have to wait and see,” he said.
“I still believe that Mercedes and Red Bull will be at the pointy end – hopefully in reverse order to last year! The cars are going to be quicker, the tyres wider, so maybe on some narrow circuits it could be a bit trickier, especially with a wider car; that might make the available room for opportunity slightly less.
“If you’re a fan, get yourself to a fast corner. Whatever track you’re at, find one of the quick corners to really see what we’re doing.”
Because of the huge changes expected in 2017, The young Aussie is not aiming at specific results.
Ricciardo said: “I don’t write stuff down and say ‘Melbourne I want to be on podium’ or ‘here I want to do that’, I just make sure I’m prepared for every race.
“I’ve said it for a few years, the one thing I want to do, if it is a goal, is never leave the race on a Sunday, on a flight home, thinking ‘I should have done this or that’. I want to leave it all on the track on Sunday.”
With testing just round the corner and only a few days to get prepared for the gruelling season ahead, Ricciardo knows all too well how tough it is to get integrated with the challenges ahead.
“The first thing you’re looking for is reliability,” he said.
“There are so few test days available. You know track time is important for the car, for development, but it’s also important for us physically.
“I’ll arrive fit and conditioned but the first day in the car is still going to hurt because your body is going through different things, things it hasn’t been through in a long time.
“You want to do the laps for yourself, so that you get that race fitness.
“After the reliability is settled you want to go through a corner and feel it in your bottom that it’s a fast car. Once you do one flying lap, you get an idea.
“It’s just the way it brakes and turns – you just know. Hopefully, it’s a good feeling, that first timed lap.”
The first of two pre-season tests ahead of the 2017 season begins in Barcelona, February 27-March 2.
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