Formula One: West Australian Daniel Ricciardo to chalk up remarkable milestone in Austria
West Australian Formula One ace Daniel Ricciardo is set to become the first Australian driver to reach 250 Grand Prix starts in Spielberg this weekend.
Ricciardo has had a tumultuous run across three teams in the last five years but continues to mark milestones for Australians on the grid.
He has the most starts and points of the rich Australian contingent, including the likes of Jack Brabham and Allan Jones, to have earned their stripes in motorsport’s premier class, and sits only behind Mark Webber for podiums.
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By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.The Grand Prix in Austria will also put Ricciardo within eight starts of entering the top 10 for all-time races.
The happy-go-lucky Duncraig product is keeping things low-key ahead of the Sprint weekend but will celebrate the milestone with a special racing helmet.
“I’ve got many reasons to be excited about Austria: it’s my 250th F1 Grand Prix, which is pretty wild,” Ricciardo said ahead of the event.
“I’m going to run a unique helmet design for this weekend, which should be fun, and it’s a home race for Red Bull at the Red Bull Ring, so there’s always a lot of support there.
“It’s good for the team, for the brand, it’s a special one.”
The Aussie flavour to the Formula One grid is only set to get stronger in coming years with the son of motorcycle racing legend Mick Doohan, Jack, rumoured to be getting a seat at Alpine for next season after impressing as a reserve driver and during his time in Formula Two.
Ricciardo will be hoping to bounce back from a bitterly disappointing run in Barcelona, where an update package failed to deliver for RB.
After gaining momentum with a points finish at the Canadian Grand Prix, both Ricciardo and his Japanese teammate Yuki Tsunoda finished in the bottom five in Spain.
“We’ll be looking to try and turn things around after Barcelona,” Ricciardo said.
“We don’t have much time as it’s a Sprint weekend with only one practice, so we really must hit the ground running. We’re ready for it!”
The race in Spielberg is anticipated as one of the closest since current World Champion Max Verstappen took the crown three years ago, with McLaren finally catching up to Red Bull’s impressive speed.
Austria is the second Grand Prix of the European triple header.
