Daniel Ricciardo was exhausted by the 32-hour-promotions at Melbourne

Few drivers unite opinion about their talent and style as well as Australian racer Daniel Ricciardo. Currently, behind the wheel of a Renault, a team with which he failed to score points in the season-opener at Melbourne, it doesn’t make one an Einstein to note that the smiling Aussie was gutted at the maiden race of the season.

The reason?

Well, not too hard to understand, right?

After all, Ricciardo, who struggled within seconds of the start of the 2019 Australian Grand Prix, going wide on the outside of Racing Point, in a failed bid to pass the Mexican inside the opening lap. Moreover, he race-retired owing to complications with his car, having lost the front wing in a tumultuous opening lap skirmish.

But if you thought that this was the only issue Daniel Ricciardo was grappling with, which ultimately compromised his entire race, then think again.

It turns out that the ‘honeybadger’ as he’s famously called was totally exhausted by the non-stop promotions that lasted almost all weekend in the lead up to the 2019 curtain raiser at Melbourne’s Albert Park.

So, wondering what exactly happened to Dan-Ric?

There were complications right from the word go for Daniel following the qualifying sessions for the 2019 Australian Grand Prix. First up, a broken seat didn’t exactly help the Aussie’s drive a bit. On top of that, losing the front wing which was followed by retirement on Lap 31 with another 27 to go, summed up the forlorn figure that the usually smiling Daniel cut in the recently-concluded Grand Prix.

In fact, Ricciardo’s tryst with the Australian Grand Prix has been so utterly forgettable that often when considering his talent, judging his potential and whatnot, one tends to forget that since 2012, he’s either disqualified or retired from 4 in 8 Grands Prix to have taken place in his home, Australia.

Did you know this one?

This leads one to a simple question. Is the pressure on Aussie drivers to nail their home race a bit too much for them to manage?

Who knows? Here’s what Daniel shared candidly.

“I really don’t know. I don’t want to blame that but I certainly didn’t… I don’t know, I feel flat for more reason that one.”