Daniel Ricciardo has joked that the tarmac at the Miami International Autodrome reminded him of the gravel roads at his outback farm, following a race in which he says it was difficult to overtake without crashing. His comparison comes after Lewis Hamilton likened the circuit's narrow chicane to a car park at British hardware store B&Q, where the seven-time World Champion would practice his karting skills as a child. Ricciardo admitted that F1 stars may come across as "spoiled" when complaining that the sport's newest venue proved difficult to drive on, but did concede to having struggled to fight due to the nature of the surface. He was not alone, with multiple drivers reporting that tyre marbles gathering off the racing line meant they were putting their race at risk by daring to run alongside when trying to overtake.
Ricciardo admits it was hard to race at Miami
When asked if the surface was acceptable for F1, Ricciardo told select members of the media, including RacingNews365.com : "I want to say no, but, obviously, that could just be us being too spoiled. "But let's say, for what we have been used to - let's just put it like that - it's certainly a little more outback spec. "It reminds me of some of the surface that I've got on my farm in Australia, that loose Australian gravel. In an off-road car, it's fun, but these Pirelli [tyres] aren't quite as switched on to this loose tarmac. "It would be nice if it was a little different and we could use more of the track. When you're following someone, you want to run a little wide and cut back, criss-cross. When you try to criss-cross, you're off track. "I saw people trying to make a move and crashing, like with [Sebastian] Vettel, [as] there was no grip on the inside. It made it hard to keep a clean race."
Hot Miami race likened to Singapore
Along with their track complaints, drivers up and down the grid reported that the hot Miami race proved a physically exhausting affair – comparable to that of F1's humid Singapore night race. But Ricciardo feels the Miami Grand Prix was successful as a whole, even if his McLaren team failed to score a point in an important territory for the car brand. "It's got that heat factor to it," he commented. "It's tough as well, because everyone is obviously fighting for that last bit of weight, so we don't have the luxury of putting three litres in the drink system. "We have a little bit, but it's never enough fluid, so naturally, you're going to get dehydrated, and it's pretty real. "I wish we had a better weekend, but it was a very, very, very good Grand Prix."
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