Daniel Ricciardo remained upbeat following a strong showing in practice for the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps.
Ricciardo finished third in both FP1 and FP2 on Friday as Red Bull showed signs of continuing its impressive display at the Hungarian Grand Prix last month when it secured a double podium finish.
The Australian driver believes that the team will face a stiffer challenge as the weekend wears on, but was satisfied with his display on Friday.
“Generally I think if we can stay third and fourth at this track it would be good,” Ricciardo said.
“It will probably be closer tomorrow as the gap from behind will close up a lot more, but let’s wait and see. Hopefully we can maintain these positions for tomorrow.
“It would be good to find some more time on the option tire, so we’ll do our homework tonight, like every team will.”
Ricciardo’s thoughts were echoed by Red Bull teammate Daniil Kvyat, who underpinned the Australian’s pace by finishing sixth in FP1 and fourth in FP2.
“The conditions were pretty unusual for Spa today, with the hot weather and we had two good sessions,” Kvyat said.
“As a priority, we need to find some time in sector two. As always, we will do our homework tonight and try to improve the package we have for tomorrow, but the car felt good so far.”
Red Bull won last year’s race in Belgium through Daniel Ricciardo after seeing Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg collide on the second lap of the race.
Should lightening strike twice at Spa, the Australian could be in the running to secure a repeat result judging by his practice pace.
The team will be hoping to carry its Friday form into qualifying on Saturday, which you can watch live on CNBC and Live Extra from 8am ET.
