McLaren ’need’ Ricciardo to score more points

McLaren is turning up the heat on struggling team newcomer Daniel Ricciardo.

Although earlier renowned as one of the best drivers in Formula 1, the 31-year-old Australian has notably struggled since joining impressive younger teammate Lando Norris this year at McLaren.

The team is currently locked in a close battle with Ferrari to hold onto third place in the constructors’ world championship.

"Daniel himself was very disappointed to not be able to continue his good development of the last races," team boss Andreas Seidl, referring to the most recent race in Austria, is quoted by Marca.

"But the fact that we are now going to race on the same track again is perfect for the learning process. We want to verify if we have drawn the right conclusions."

Seidl says McLaren needs Ricciardo to be scoring as many points as possible at each grand prix.

"In the battle we are in, it is clear that we need to score points every weekend with both cars," said the German.

Ferrari, on the other hand, seems much more focused on preparations for the 2022 season rather than fighting for third place against McLaren this year.

"How important is it for us to score more points than McLaren? Not very," Ferrari team boss Mattia Binotto is quoted by international media.

"I already said at the beginning of the season that our main task is to prepare for the new regulations by improving in all areas."