Ricciardo expressed that his return to F1 on the first day felt as if he had never been away.

The Australian is making his comeback with AlphaTauri at the Hungaroring this weekend after being drafted in as a replacement for Nyck de Vries.

And although he was one of several drivers not to complete a flying lap in the rain-interrupted first practice session, he ended the afternoon’s FP2 running 14th, less than half a second behind team-mate Yuki Tsunoda.

After stepping out of the car, Ricciardo expressed his belief that there was still ample opportunity for progress. However, he found solace in the fact that his initial encounter with the AT04 car did not raise any significant concerns.

“In terms of position, it may not be particularly important right now,” he stated. “I believe today was more about getting a sense of where I stand with the car. And everything felt quite familiar.”

“I believe it’s evident that there is significant external focus. However, once I wore the helmet and sat in the car, it felt as if I hadn’t truly departed in any way. Hence, that was a pleasant experience.”

Ricciardo is confident that making adjustments to his car’s set-up, along with him gaining more familiarity with F1 machinery, could lead to a strong showing in the qualifying session.

Daniel Ricciardo, Scuderia AlphaTauri

Photo by: Michael Potts / Motorsport Images

“I believe there is still more potential within me. Additionally, I have already identified certain aspects in the car that we can focus on and improve.”

Currently, I am feeling quite positive. It appears that Yuki also had a successful day. Therefore, I believe that by combining all of these factors, we might be able to perform adequately tomorrow.

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Ricciardo thought he could improve in one aspect, which was his ability to attack new tires. During FP2, he had the opportunity to test the soft and medium compounds that will be used in tomorrow’s qualifying session.

“I believe the initial collection on medium tires was manageable,” he expressed. “We are gradually making progress with it. As for the soft tires, I am still in the process of grasping how to complete a lap effectively.”

“In general, I believe I had a positive experience driving the car today. There are areas that require my attention, but I am not overly worried about them. Additionally, there are aspects of the car that we can continue to focus on enhancing.”