Daniel Ricciardo’s career is RUINED from the start, while Oscar Piastri is left frustrated by the cruel loss of the podium in the shocking Canadian GP for the Australians.

Daniel Ricciardo’s hopes were dashed from the start, while fellow Australian Oscar Piastri lamented what could have been dramatic scenes at the Canadian GP.

Max Verstappen took victory in the Canadian Grand Prix on a rainy Monday (AEST) at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. While the win brought joy to Red Bull and Verstappen, it was a day of disappointment for Ricciardo.

It was an eventful lead-up to the Canadian GP, ​​with former champion Jacques Villeneuve questioning why Ricciardo is still in F1 and claiming his image ultimately saved his career in a wild live television rant.

While being interviewed by Sky Sports in Montreal on Sunday morning, Ricciardo explained that he had just learned of the F1 great’s scathing comments after delivering a qualifying masterclass on Sunday to start fifth on the grid.

‘I won’t even give them the time of day. But yeah, in the top five, I’ve been fast all weekend. We are less than two tenths from pole,’ he stated.

‘Then eat shit.’

But it all went wrong quickly for the Australian in torrid conditions at Gilles Villeneuve.

After his brilliant qualifying, which saw him start fifth, Daniel Ricciardo had a nightmare first lap, making a minimal false start and losing four places to drop to ninth place in the first corners in wet conditions.

However, as the replays progressed, fans were not convinced that the penalty awarded was justified as Ricciardo did not appear to move.

‘He did?’ Martin Brundle said on Sky Sports as he watched the replay.

Ted Kravitz added: “I have to say the lights seemed to go out and then he started moving.”

Ricciardo received a five-second penalty for the infringement which saw him drop to 12th after the pit stops, but fought back strongly to finish eighth, three places behind fellow Australian Oscar Piastri.

Piastri had his own frustrations, missing out on his first visit to a Formula One podium this season, the Australian left reflecting on what could have been after Max Verstappen took a hard-earned victory at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. .

Dutch Red Bull maestro Verstappen was forced to hold off Piastri’s McLaren teammate Lando Norris in a dramatic finish to Sunday’s race at Imola, winning by just 0.725 seconds at the checkered flag .

It must have left Piastri, who eventually finished fourth after a frustrating day trying to overtake a pair of Ferraris, wondering what he could have achieved if he had been able to get a clear lead on Verstappen.

Unfortunately for the Melburnian, he never got the chance after having to start fifth on the grid following a stewards’ penalty following his brilliant second place in qualifying on Saturday.

Piastri, who had been relegated for obstructing Kevin Magnussen’s Haas in qualifying, had been faster than Norris all weekend, but his English team-mate almost followed up his first victory in Miami with a late charge on Sunday.

“I think it’s shown that we can definitely fight them,” Piastri said, putting aside any personal disappointment.

It was a familiar story, however, as Verstappen took his fifth victory in seven races this season, the 59th of his career and the third in a row at Imola.

‘I no longer had any grip. I was slipping a lot. I saw Lando approaching. The last 10 laps were full speed,” said a relieved Verstappen, who looked set for another easy victory but had to sweat at the end to claim the spoils as Norris closed in.

‘It’s difficult when the tires no longer work and you have to go full throttle. I couldn’t afford to make too many mistakes. Luckily we didn’t.