Ricciardo reveals reasons for “pretty miserable” F1 comeback in Austin

Ricciardo was in contention for a top 10 spot at the Circuit of the Americas but started to tumble down the order midway through the race.

The Australian was overtaken by the Haas of Nico Hulkenberg before making a late pit stop for fresh rubber to set the fastest lap - which was later beaten by AlphaTauri teammate Yuki Tsunoda.

Speaking after the race, Ricciardo blamed his “miserable” comeback on damage he sustained.

“We were just limited with damage, unfortunately,” Ricciardo.

“We picked up some damage very shortly after the hard because we lost a lot of pace very quickly.

“I told the team ‘Sorry guys, I’ve got nothing right now. I really can’t do anything’.

“They said that it looked like we’ve lost something, and then they said, ‘Yeah, there’s damage to somewhere on the front of the car’. I guess it was debris.

“They mentioned (Lance) Stroll. I think we got close, but I don’t think we touched, so I think we must have picked up some debris somewhere, and that made our race a pretty miserable one.

“I won’t lie, we’re at best a top-10 car but when you add damage into it, we are certainly out of the points.”

It was Ricciardo’s first back after he injured his wrist at the Dutch Grand Prix.

He admitted it was a “tough race” physically but “still felt okay”.

“I felt probably worse yesterday (after the sprint) than today – I say worse but I was obviously still okay,” Ricciardo added.

“But I felt like I got out of the car probably sweating more, so maybe that was just a good little warm-up for me.

“There are positives. The hand is no excuse, that was good, and we did well with the timing of the return, to kind of have no hesitations or excuses.

“Physically, it’s definitely a tough race and I still felt okay.”