It was a week to forget for Visa Cash App RB F1 Team in Azerbaijan.
For the second straight Grand Prix, Yuki Tsunoda was forced to retire in the early stages, after contact with Lance Stroll on the opening lap of the Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix. As for Daniel Ricciardo, while he was able to finish the race, he did so out of the points.
With young Oliver Bearman finishing tenth in his Haas Grand Prix debut, that pulled VCARB’s rivals in their push for sixth in the Constructors’ Championship to within six points of them.
Now the team is hoping for a better result in this weekend’s Singapore Grand Prix.
“I’m looking forward to a trouble free weekend in Singapore and as usual, our first target will be to see if we can get into Q3, having come very close in Baku,” said Tsunoda in the team’s media preview. “Singapore is a long and physically very demanding race, not just because of the heat and humidity, which doesn’t actually bother me much, but also in terms of the driving, as there’s no time to rest on the stop-start track and you change gear here more often than at any other event.
“There’s nearly always a Safety Car period so you have to be ready to make the most of any opportunity. You also have to deal with very big track evolution, as much as 3 seconds per lap from FP1 to Quali. But since last year, when they removed some of the slow turns, it’s more fun to drive.“
As for Ricciardo, in addition to hoping for a better result in Singapore, the driver is looking forward to tackling the Marina Bay Street Circuit again. Ricciardo was sidelined for last season’s Singapore Grand Prix, recovering from the hand injury he suffered at the Dutch Grand Prix.
“I really enjoy the Marina Bay Street Circuit. It’s one of my favourite tracks. I didn’t race here last year, so I’m looking forward to being back,” said Ricciardo. “It’s super hot and humid, which is an additional challenge. Hopefully we can perform better than what we showed in Baku. We’re working hard as a Team to understand this and improve. I’m excited to get back on this track and try to score some points.”
As we outlined in the storylines for the week, VCARB can take solace in the fact that they scored a pair of points in last year’s race with a ninth-place finish.
Only it was Liam Lawson, driving in place of Ricciardo, who delivered that result.