Daniel Ricciardo’s cheeky Dutch Grand Prix act goes viral

Australian Formula 1 driver Daniel Ricciardo has gone viral after one sneaky act was caught on camera in the middle of a session.

Daniel Ricciardo is back at the Dutch Grand Prix and the Australian driver delivered a cheeky act on Friday night (AEST).

The Aussie is back at the scene where he crashed and suffered seven bone fractures in his left hand last year.

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As the Formula 1 paddock returned to the Zandvoort Circuit, Ricciardo made a promise to reporters ahead of the opening practice session.

Ricciardo, 35, said he would get in the car “salute Turn 3, give it a little hello and crack on”. The Aussie made good on his promise during his first outlap as he made his way around the bend.

The VCARB driver delivered a cheeky little salute to the outside barrier as he drove past and got on with his lap.

Daniel Ricciardo's cheeky act during practice.

Unfortunately things didn’t go to plan for the Aussie as he struggled to get the best of the tricky conditions.

“It was windy, we had a little bit of everything,” Ricciardo said.

“I used all three compounds today so there was a bit going on. There’s a bit to find where I think we were kind of just diving head first into the data a little bit and try and understand.

“We struggled a little bit more than anticipated, especially on the medium versus the hard, we kind of split tyres with Yuki and myself. He was a lot quicker on the hard than I was on the medium.

“We started to look on some things and then on the soft managed to get in a bit of a better lap but still not quite there.

“Hopefully we’ll find a few things tonight and then set up ourselves for tomorrow.”

It wasn’t great signs for the Aussie. (Photo by Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images)

British driver George Russell set the fastest time in practice, with local hero Max Verstappen complaining of a lack of pace as he trailed in fifth.

Mercedes star Russell set a lap time of 1:10.702 early in the second hour-long practice session and it was never beaten, Oscar Piastri from Australia coming in 0.061 seconds behind in a McLaren.

World champion Verstappen of Red Bull came in fifth, 0.284 seconds behind Russell, having been pipped into second by Lando Norris from McLaren in the day’s first practice session.

“We didn’t quite have the pace on the long and the short runs and at the moment, there isn’t a clear answer on how to improve this, but we will look into things,” said Verstappen.

Russell said he struggled with “perhaps the windiest conditions I can remember” but added that the car was performing well after an upgrade to the floor.

“We expect to be facing another fascinating battle across the rest of the weekend for the podium spots,” predicted Russell.

Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton could also be satisfied with his day’s work, finishing third behind Russell and Piastri.

George Russell was flying out in front. (Photo by Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images)

Verstappen, 26, has never lost at his “home” Grand Prix since it was reintroduced to the circuit in 2021.

The three-time champion had a blistering start to the season, picking up from where he left off in 2023 with seven wins out of the first 10.

But he has endured a lean spell by his high standards, failing to take the chequered flag in any of the last four Grands Prix - his most barren period since 2020.

This has given the chasing pack, led by Norris, some hope they can somehow prevent Verstappen cruising to a fourth world championship.

Norris sits 78 points behind Verstappen in the drivers’ championship and while he hopes to overhaul the Dutchman, he was realistic about his chances before the race.

“It’s a lot of points and it’s against Max, so I want to be optimistic and say there’s still chances, I know it’s a lot and it’s going to be a very difficult challenge.”

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella, said that Norris “definitely has the potential of a world champion and he’s performing at world championship level”.

Whether he can top the standings this year remains an open question, though, Stella told reporters.

“Numerically, from a driver’s championship point of view, it looks like there’s a big gap to fill and we are chasing Max Verstappen, so definitely he’s not going to make it easy for us.

“But we are excited to be in this position.”

- with AFP