Ricciardo explains Verstappen mindset in team radio conduct

Daniel Ricciardo has weighed in on Max Verstappen's team radio conduct from the Hungarian Grand Prix.

The Australian's former Red Bull team-mate ruffled feathers in the F1 paddock and online at the Hungaroring for his at-times aggressive and expletive-ridden conversations with race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase.

It was a difficult grand prix for the Dutchman. Having started from third, his strategy left him fighting his way back past Lewis Hamilton to clinch a podium finish.

He failed in that pursuit, coming together with the Mercedes in the closing stages and falling to fifth place, where he finished.

To Ricciardo, however, it is hard to explain why drivers vary in tone over team radio from race to race, but the eight-time race winner ultimately empathised with Verstappen.

"So I heard the in-race radio stuff... I heard the little conversations between him and GP [Gianpiero Lambiase]," the 34-year-old told media including RacingNews365.

"Look, sometimes it's hard to explain why we… some races I'm super calm and other races I'm agitated and everything frustrates me and annoys me. So, sometimes our actions, or the way we feel, are not always predictable."

Ricciardo empathises with Verstappen's 'frustration'

Both during and in the aftermath of the Hungarian Grand Prix, it was suggested that Verstappen's late-night sim racing activities had led to his demeanour over the radio and subsequent underwhelming result.

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner confirmed he would speak privately to Verstappen about his radio antics after the 26-year-old openly criticised the team's strategy.

These comments were made in response to Lambiase's remark about the Dutchman ignoring instructions on tyre management.

"I think there was one where GP [Lambiase] said something about bringing the tyres in," Ricciardo added. "Obviously, Max didn't. He just probably pushed straight away... I would say that's coming from a place of frustration.

"So, something leading up to that has probably made him just be like: 'I don't care anymore'. I'm just going to push and see what happens - it's probably built up frustration through the race. 

"But yeah, it happens... Going back and forth, having conversations through the race, it's probably not ideal. I guess we've all been there at times."

Ricciardo chose team radio silence in Hungary

To further aid Ricciardo's ability to understand Verstappen's Hungarian plight, the Australian also had a difficult afternoon in Budapest.

Having fallen back from his ninth-place grid slot behind those on softer rubber, the RB driver was brought in with the cars on the red-walled Pirellis, disadvantaging his race strategy and causing him to spend the rest of the race stuck behind slower cars.

"For me, the race was frustrating on Sunday," he said, before detailing his response - or lack thereof - over team radio.

"For whatever reason, I chose silence to let that do the talking. And, okay, on the in-lap, then I said a bit more, but in a way I just couldn't be bothered chatting about it through the race because for me, what was done was done. 

"So any talk I had kind of felt a bit hopeless or helpless. So that was my way of handling my frustration in that race. So it can vary. It's race-to-race dependent, I guess. It's a hot and sometimes very flustered environment in the cockpit."