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Ricciardo reveals beef with Hungarian Grand Prix

It has been his most successful race since joining Red Bull in 2014 but Daniel Ricciardo has revealed he needs to shake up his plans for the Hungarian Grand Prix.

The Australian sits fourth in the Formula One drivers' championship at the midpoint of the 20-race season, well behind the leading pack of Sebastian Vettel, Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas but with a reasonable buffer over Kimi Raikkonen in fifth.

Ricciardo's run of consecutive podiums ended at five when he finished fifth at Silverstone two weeks ago, and the 28-year-old is excited to continue rebuilding his season with a return to the Hungaroring.

He won the 2014 race - his second F1 victory - and finished third in 2015 and 2016.

But with the temperatures rising over the weekend, from 26 degrees on Friday to a maximum of 31 on race day, Ricciardo will be cautious about his Budapest belly.

"If Sunday is hot it’ll definitely be a physically demanding race," he said.

"So I can’t make the mistake again of eating too much meat on Saturday night."

Daniel Ricciardo. Pic: Getty
Daniel Ricciardo. Pic: Getty

The Hungaroring is less than half an hour out of Budapest, allowing teams to stay in the city centre in the lead-up to the race.

The grand prix is also the last week for drivers to spend time with their teams before the four-week summer break.

“On Saturday night I normally plan a meal with a few of the guys from the team," Ricciardo said.

"That’s always a good one as it’s the end of the first half of the season and the atmosphere is cool so I’ll definitely be seen on the streets of Budapest.”

Ricciardo's British Grand Prix added to his standing as one of the paddock's best drivers when he turned 19th on the grid into fifth at the chequered flag, completing 11 of the race's 32 on-track overtakes.


The Perth-born racer had expected Red Bull to implement a 'significant' upgrade ahead of the Hungary but team boss Christian Horner clarified that it is a more evolutionary aerodynamic improvement.

Still, Ricciardo is upbeat about his RB13 challenging the four Mercedes and Ferrari cars for top honours.

“We’ve got lots more grip this year so it’ll be a bit more fun," he said.

"The second sector is going to be amazing. That’s one of my favourite sectors in F1."