McLaren recruit Daniel Ricciardo managed to finish among the points on his first race for his new team.
However, it could have been a lot better as the team has revealed that he was racing with a significantly damaged car.
The Bahrain Grand Prix saw Ricciardo line up with Lando Norris for McLaren.
While the team is not expected to fight for the championship this year, there was an expectation that they will figure among the top 4 teams come the end of the season.
That might well be a very realistic target for them, especially after news emerged that Ricciardo could be a lot faster in future races.
The Bahrain Grand Prix saw the Australian finish in seventh position, but it was revealed that he was racing with a significantly damaged car.
“Post-race we found damage to Daniel’s floor from the impact of Pierre (Gasly) running into the back of his car at the beginning of the race,” said team principal Andreas Seidl.
“The level of damage cost a considerable amount of downforce. Despite the performance loss Daniel used his experience to cope with the issues and score important points for the team.”
McLaren will head to the second race in third position as far as the constructors’ championship is concerned after Norris was able to finish the race in fourth position.