Daniel Ricciardo in Barcelona for treatment on broken wrist, reveals more about Dutch grand prix crash
Daniel Ricciardo has apologised to AlphaTauri after his crash in practice at the Dutch Grand Prix left him with a broken hand and the team searching for a replacement.
Daniel Ricciardo returns to the paddock after X-rays confirmed a broken hand. (Dean Mouhtaropoulos / Getty Images)
The Australian shared his disappointment to hit pause on his F1 return after making positive progress with AlphaTauri.
“I was very excited to be back after the break,” said Ricciardo.
“The day was going pretty well.”
“We made some changes for FP2 and the few laps I did on the hard tyre before the crash felt good; we were building up and improving. At that time, we were pretty competitive, and I was feeling positive.”
It came unstuck early in free practice two when Ricciardo had to take avoiding action in turn three.
“I remember coming into Turn 3. I had already gotten into the corner and then saw Piastri, so it was either hit him or the wall.”
“When I hit the wall, I didn’t have enough time to take my hands off the steering wheel, so the wheel came and hit my hand.
“It's really unfortunate and frustrating, but I’ll try to recover as quickly as I can.
“Obviously, I’d love to get back soon, but I also want to ensure we do things the right way, so I come back strong and competitive.
“I wish the team well, and I’m sorry for the change in plans again. It’s a chance for Liam to have a go, and I wish him and the team a strong weekend.”
Ricciardo talks to Lance Stroll in the paddock at Zandvoort. The AlphaTauri driver will be treated by Dr Xavier Mir, who treated Stroll for two broken wrists prior to the start of the season. (Dean Mouhtaropoulos / Getty Images)
Ricciardo has flown to Barcelona for treatment by Dr Xavier Mir, who previously treated fellow driver Lance Stroll for a pre-season wrist injury on both hands.
Mir manages the Hand Surgery and Micro-Surgery Unit in the Traumatology and Orthopaedic Surgery Department of Hospital Universitari Dexeus in Barcelona, where he is known for his treatment of injured athletes, serving as a long-time doctor in MotoGP and the Dakar Rally.
Stroll was able to race two weeks later.
“He’s headed off today to Barcelona, they may even have a little operation on him tomorrow to just tidy up where that break is,” Red Bull team principal Christian Horner told Sky Sports.
“It’s quite a clean break and then of course it’s all about the recuperation and how long that takes.”
“Any normal human being would probably be about 10-12 weeks but we know that these guys aren’t normal.”
The Italian Grand Prix is the weekend after Zandvoort, the second leg of a double-header as Formula 1 races through ten circuits in fourteen weeks. The next option for Ricciardo’s return would be the Singapore Grand Prix.
"The thing he was most frustrated about talking with him last night was he's just taken a bunch of time off, just got his mojo back, getting back into it and now he's on the bench again," said Horner.
"I'm sure at the back of his mind he's probably got Singapore as a target, but then again Singapore's probably one of the toughest circuits on the calendar. Nature will take its course."
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