Daniel Ricciardo says his contact with Kimi Raikkonen was normal in order to make an overtaking move in the Monaco Grand Prix.
Running sixth behind Raikkonen following a late pit stop for supersoft tyres, Ricciardo tapped the left rear of the Ferrari heading in to Mirabeau, sending Raikkonen wide and allowing the Red Bull through. Raikkonen complained over the radio that the move was “not very nice” but the stewards cleared Ricciardo after an investigation and the Australian says it was good for the sport he wasn’t penalised.
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“It was a good race today and a good result for the team,” Ricciardo said. “I had some fun in the last few laps trying to get close to [Lewis] Hamilton and [Sebastian] Vettel to fight for a podium position. I knew we were in a position to attack in the end which made it exciting I think. The team worked well, Dany [Kvyat] let me past to have a crack at the podium and I gave back the place on the last lap when I couldn’t get past Hamilton.
LAP 74/78: Ricciardo and Raikkonen touch wheels as the Red Bull slips up the Ferrari’s inside #MonacoGP pic.twitter.com/rXaqpyBUoq
— Formula 1 (@F1) May 24, 2015
“I had a little incident with Kimi and it’s hard to get a clean move without a little contact in Monaco, I appreciate the stewards not taking any further action and I think the crowd and the fans enjoyed it. We’ll try and keep up the pace in the next few races to hopefully stay in the top five.”
With Kvyat eventually finishing fourth – one place ahead of Ricciardo – the Russian is delighted with his best ever F1 result.
“I am happy with today’s race, it was my best finish in Formula One and it was a great result for the team to finish fourth and fifth,” Kvyat said. “I had a good start and was able to control my race from then on.
“We took a gamble with strategy allowing Daniel past after the last safety car to try and fight for a podium position, as he was on the faster Supersoft tyres. But as he was unable to pass anyone, as agreed, he gave the place back on the last lap. We hope we can carry this momentum onto the next races.”
