Ricciardo broke his wrist in follow for Zandvoort’s Dutch Grand Prix again in August, which halted his F1 return after simply two races.
Ricciardo sat out 5 race weekends whereas being deputised by reserve driver Liam Lawson, however will return to the wheel of AlphaTauri’s AT04 at this weekend US Grand Prix on the Circuit of the Americas.
“It was positively irritating watching the previous few races,” Ricciardo mentioned.
“Particularly as I’d gotten myself to a spot the place I used to be so able to go once more and race, after which I did two occasions and needed to hit pause once more, however truly, the time with out racing went fairly shortly.”
Ricciardo revealed he was not but at his “full potential” when testing his hand in a pre-Qatar simulator session, however he now feels he’s absolutely able to race once more.
“My hand is a lot better, and the simulator was a helpful manner of assessing it,” he defined.
“I attempted it out within the week earlier than Qatar, however I didn’t really feel it was at full potential, so I spent the remainder of that week within the UK, spending extra time within the sim, and acquired to some extent the place I felt able to go.
Picture by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images
Daniel Ricciardo, Scuderia AlphaTauri within the paddock with Mark Webber
“My general health is ok as I saved coaching as a lot as I might, though I clearly couldn’t do a lot with my left hand or arm for some time.”
Whereas Ricciardo was out of motion, Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda benefitted from an upgraded AlphaTauri, which has helped the previous rating two factors in Singapore.
However the Faenza squad continues to be final within the championship, seven factors behind ninth-placed Haas which itself has introduced wholesale automotive modifications to Austin.
“The present automotive has moved on a bit since I final drove it, however the sim was helpful to get an thought of what the modifications and updates have delivered,” Ricciardo commented on how his automotive has modified throughout his restoration.
“I felt a bit of little bit of their impact, nevertheless it’s a kind of issues I feel, as soon as I get on observe, I’ll really feel them to their full impact.
“I used to be there in Singapore after they tried it the primary time, and it was fascinating to listen to the suggestions and feedback, which have been largely Positive. So, I’m excited to see what it’s like first-hand.”