Lando Norris scolds Daniel Ricciardo during barnstorming French Grand Prix drive

Daniel Ricciardo was all smiles after a near-flawless performance at the French GP but Lando Norris had a bone to pick with the Aussie.

Lando Norris wasn't always happy with Daniel Ricciardo.

He wasn’t able to clinch a coveted podium finish, but Daniel Ricciardo can take plenty of positives from the 2021 French Grand Prix.

The Australian expertly wove his way through the field during the middle portion of the race to finish in sixth — one spot behind McLaren teammate Lando Norris — as the main event was won by Max Verstappen, who stood with Lewis Hamilton (second) and Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez (third) on the podium.

A strategic masterstroke from the McLaren boffins also helped Ricciardo overtake a pair of rivals on Lap 17.

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It’s been a relatively frustrating season for Ricciardo, but the 31-year-old was more than pleased with his performance at Circuit Paul Ricard.

“It was a fun race,” Ricciardo told Sky Sports. “Typically, it’s not always a track that allows us to fight that hard, so I was pleasantly surprised that it was a good race all through the field today.

“First stint was really strong … there’s certainly still some things to improve on, but for the most part, definitely a productive weekend.

“In the first stint, everyone was suffering a bit, but we were suffering a little less.”

Ricciardo subsequently moves up to ninth in the 2021 drivers’ standings, while McLaren overtakes third-placed Ferrari in the constructors’ standings.

The West Australian was all smiles after a couple of disappointing outings in Monaco in Baku, finally looking more at home in his McLaren.

Amazing result for @McLarenF1 today! Both did fab. SO happy to see Ricciardo bossing it

— MARIA (@RiaBish) June 20, 2021

“It was fun — battled, fought, talked some smack, elbows out and then had to hold off a fast-charging (Pierre) Gasly and (Fernando) Alonso at the end,” Ricciardo said.

“After the frustrations of Monaco, I kind of took a step back and was like ‘big picture’ — I know that it’s going to come and I know that if I keep persisting … I think like staying resilient through it all, days like this will come and I will be able to battle, pull off some moves and all that sort of stuff.

“So this car will feel like home and I think today it started to feel a little more like home — and the next two (races) coming up are hopefully fun ones as well, with some good moves, battles. And it’s nice seeing the others suffer a little bit more than us as well.

“It was a fun race and I’m happy we brought it home in fifth and sixth for the team today. It’s about time we got back in these positions, so it was a positive day.”

Teammate scolds Ricciardo in radio complaint

Starting 10th on the grid, Ricciardo quickly passed Norris on the opening lap to slide up into ninth.

The McLaren pair were embroiled in a skirmish on the second lap, which saw Norris briefly drive off the track, as revealed by Sky Sports analyst Ted Kravitz.

The young Brit was overheard complaining about Ricciardo on the team radio soon after.

“The McLaren drivers are not making it easy for each other,” Kravitz said.

“Lando Norris, having gone off, sort of complaining a little bit on the radio about Daniel Ricciardo, telling them, ‘He’s pushing me wide, not giving me enough space’.”

Ricciardo slowly closed in on Spanish great Fernando Alonso, who was complaining about his tyres on the team radio, and the Australian completed the overtake on Lap 11.

Now racing in eighth place, Ricciardo chased Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and passed him comfortably on Lap 15.

“Let’s f***ing go!” Ricciardo cried as he charged towards his next target — AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly.

But McLaren opted for a bold team strategy on Lap 17, telling Ricciardo: “Box to overtake Gasly.”

And the plan worked wonders for Ricciardo. Although the Perth driver emerged from the pits in 17th, he ultimately managed to undercut Gasly and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz.

“That’s worked a treat for Daniel Ricciardo,” commentator Martin Brundle said on Sky Sports.

He's jumped both Sainz and Gasly in the pits 📈 This Daren Ricciardo is pretty good#FrenchGP#F1

— Motorsport.com (@Motorsport) June 20, 2021

What is Daniel Ricciardo on, speed 🚄🚄

— Shloke Sarkar (@ShlokeSrkr) June 20, 2021

When Alonso and Williams driver Nicolas Latifi pitted on Lap 19, Ricciardo suddenly found himself up in 12th place.

What followed was a classy period of driving from the Australian, flawlessly overtaking a series of rivals on the fresher tyres. He passed Kimi Raikkonen on Lap 23 and slid up to 10th when Norris pitted soon after.

Ricciardo overtook Alfa Romeo’s Antonio Giovinazzi on Lap 26 before zooming past former teammate Esteban Ocon to move up into eighth the following lap.

Then in Lap 28, Ricciardo once again passed Leclerc to crack into the top seven.

“He’s having a storming race, it’s got to be said,” commentator David Croft told Sky Sports.

Norris was also barging his way through the field, and Ricciardo allowed his teammate on the fresher tyres to pass him on Lap 34.

But when Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll pitted on Lap 35, the Aussie moved back up to seventh place.

The two McLaren drivers soon found themselves in fifth and sixth when four-time F1 champion Sebastian Vettel pitted on Lap 38.

Ricciardo then had to maintain his position for the remainder of the French Grand Prix on deteriorating tyres, with Gasly slowly closing the gap from behind.

Although his pace was dropping off, Ricciardo managed to hold off Gasly and finish the race in sixth place — his equal best finish of the 2021 season to date.

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Enjoy that? What a race! 🙌#FrenchGP 🇫🇷 #F1pic.twitter.com/2W3UtdzjWx

— Formula 1 (@F1) June 20, 2021

Daniel Ricciardo P6, that’s what I’m talkin about 💪🏼💪🏼

— Daniel Miles (@danielmiles) June 20, 2021

What a stunning race. Hamilton v Verstappen at its best and a top strategy battle between Red Bull and Mercedes. Great to see two teams in the championship fight. Plus a stellar drive from Ricciardo. Well worth the late night! #FrenchGP

— Matthew Taylor (@MattyA_Taylor) June 20, 2021

If the race had been a couple of laps longer, Gasly would have almost certainly overtaken the Australian.

Meanwhile, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen showed his class at Circuit Paul Ricard by overtaking seven-time F1 champion Lewis Hamilton on the penultimate lap to clinch his third victory of the season.