Daniel Ricciardo insists that he doesn't need to listen to comments from Helmut Marko in order to know that he needs to raise his game.
When not up to his elbows in the Horner saga, Helmut Marko has found the time to fire a warning shot across Daniel Ricciardo's bow, the Austrian warning, in the wake of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, that the Australian "has to come up with something soon".
With a well-earned reputation as Red Bull's Lord High Executioner, few would regard the threat as empty, for Marko has history, as any number of drivers can attest.
However, speaking to the media ahead of his home race, Ricciardo insists that being his own fiercest critic he doen't require further input from the likes of Marko.
"No, it's not annoying," he replied, when asked if he found the comments annoying, especially in terms of coming days before his home race. "I think there's always, as a big part of our job... The most important part is the driving, but a big part of it is talking to you guys and obviously hearing when things go well, obviously everyone's talking positively and when they don't, they don't talk so positively. So that's part of it.
"I think also the more I get into the sport, the more I just know that I'm back here because I believe I can do it," he continued. "I believe I belong here, and it's really that.
"When people say, do you have a point to prove or anything, or do you need to keep people happy or please anyone, I'm here for myself. It's honestly that, because I know I can still do it. I do want to make people proud, the people that support me.
"If someone says something, I know it already, because I've told myself that, or I know what's expected from me. So that's that. Of course, I want to be qualifying Q3. I want to get these results that I believe I can.
"But it's tight. We're in such a tight midfield. And like Bahrain in quali, I knew I didn't put the lap together I should have. And I put my hand up for that. And that's the difference. That's the difference from maybe P14 to a Q3. I think end of Q1 in Saudi from P9 to P16 was less than a tenth. So you can very quickly look like a hero or not. And that's where every tenth counts. And that's where obviously I look to myself first."
With the first signs appearing that Ricciardo could be under pressure to retain his RB seat, the dream return to Red Bull seems a long way off, but the Australian insists that he was never that focussed on a return in the first place.
"I don't buy into any of the stories, if you will," he said. "I know, obviously, what my position is in the team. I know, let's say, some potential things that could happen if I do really well. But that's all just... It's like everything you know.
"I think any team you're with, you know if you have a really strong season it could lead to maybe something different or increase your position where you currently are. I think it's always our objective to do the best we can. And I think whatever happens will happen or can happen.
"But for us, my objective is to drive this car as good as I can. I think now getting back into a car I'm definitely not looking too far ahead. So am I thinking about the Red Bull seat that you speak of? No. I know if I do some really good results, maybe then that can present itself potentially. It's not something I think about because, yeah, as you said, 12 months ago, I wasn't in this position. I didn't know if I would be back in this position. So I think I just take it weekend after weekend.
"There will always be some, yeah, whatever going around. But I know my job and what I need to do. And I think the more I get... Look, it's through experience as well. But the more you get caught up in that stuff, then that starts taking focus away from my job and that's driving as fast as possible.
"I know we do a lot of other things during the course of a race weekend but that's why we're here ultimately, to push the car to the limit and try to make it as good as it can be. So this weekend it's something I look forward to obviously being here racing at home, but yeah, as you said, after the first two races it hasn't been amazing. but it's not a concern I think it's two races out of 24 and there's a lot of new people in the team. So it's very early, but I do definitely want to have a strong weekend and yeah, do well."
Asked about the coming weekend, and also a claim by the team that it found an issue after qualifying, Ricciardo said: "Yeah, we found some inconsistencies across cars. And that, I think, was obviously... As I touched on earlier, when it's so tight, you know, especially in our position, you need everything to obviously try and be there. So that was that. And then in the race, you know, early in the Safety Car period, we had a slow stop. So then it put us at the back and yeah, pretty much in a DRS train after that. So then you're out of position and that kind of made it a very long and tough weekend.
"So ahead of this weekend, I think everything's been addressed. I've been speaking with the team a lot. I was back in the sim as well after Saudi and before heading home. So yeah, I feel like we've done everything we can to come here with our best shot and I'm very, very happy that we're probably 24 hours away from getting in the car."
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