Ricciardo excited to be back in action in Austin

Daniel Ricciardo shared his enthusiasm for his long-awaited return on the track after being sidelined for 5 races with a broken hand.

Ricciardo confirmed earlier this week that he will be back for the United States Grand Prix with Alpha Tauri.

The Aussie suffered a broken metacarpal in his left hand that required immediate surgery after crashing into the barrier during the second practice session at the Dutch Grand Prix in August.

More on this topic:

Daniel Ricciardo tops first free practice of the season

“It’s good to be back. My hand is much better, and the simulator was a useful way of assessing it. I tried it out in the week before Qatar, but I didn’t feel it was at full potential.” he said.

“It was definitely frustrating watching the past few races, especially as I’d gotten myself to a place where I was so ready to go again and race, and then I did two events and had to hit ‘Pause’ again, but actually, the time without racing went quite quickly.”

In his absence Alpha Tauri introduced rookie Liam Lawsom, who impressed in Ricciardo’s absence, but to the surprise of many was not given a full contract.