MEXICO CITY — Daniel Ricciardo delivered another memorable one-liner after claiming pole position for the Mexican Grand Prix.
The jovial Australian has been out of sorts and out of luck since his last pole at the Monaco Grand Prix, which he went on to win — also his last visit to the podium. His Saturday performance denied Red Bull teammate Max Verstappen the chance to make history as the youngest ever driver to claim the accolade.
Ricciardo memorably said earlier this year that he decided to “lick the stamp and send it” for a decisive pass on Valtteri Bottas for the win in China. In Mexico, the Australian paraphrased one of the more memorable quotes from comedy film 21 Jump Street to convey his shock and excitement.
“I knew it was there somewhere,” the Australian said. “We hadn’t had the cleanest laps in practice and I just knew putting the laps together would be crucial as always. I knew the pace was in the car as Max had shown all weekend from start to finish, so I knew it was all about putting a clean lap together at the end.
“I still wasn’t convinced as it wasn’t the cleanest but putting it on pole, I can relax now because I’m tripping major nutsack right now!”
Ricciardo, who moves to Renault in 2019, opened his radio channel to let out a roar of delight after being told he had claimed pole. He said he had to restrain his emotions afterwards, mindful of a job only half done.
“I’m holding a lot in, I let a bit out when I heard I got pole. I held a lot in. I have got to save some energy for tomorrow. Super happy. It’s been a while since pole. It’s been a while since I’ve had a good weekend in general. We have been quick all weekend from start.
“To get a one two from a team point of view is awesome. We have to finish it tomorrow. To confirm that pace in qualifying is good. I knew there was a bit more in it and we squeezed it out at the end. It was a good fight. Just happy to put together a good run.”