Daniil Kvyat says he could have won the United States GP had it stayed wet at the Circuit of The Americas.
The Russian overtook team-mate Ricciardo and Rosberg at the start of the race and was challenging Lewis Hamilton for the lead.
He fought closely with the Mercedes for the first half of the race, including a failed lunge on lap 12 to pass Nico Rosberg, but as the track dried the Red Bulls couldn’t keep up and Daniil crashed out on lap 42.
“The opening laps were mega, it was very enjoyable and it was nice fighting, but then the track dried out. If it was a wet race I felt it could have been a victory today,” Daniil explained after his retirement.
“Once it dried out we were an easy target for everyone, which was a bit frustrating. We weren’t able to be as competitive in the dry as in the wet so we’ll have to have a look at that.”
Kvyat still leads his team-mate in the championship by two points, because Ricciardo ran into his own problems in the race and only picked up 10th place.
“I was driving a bit over my limit when I crashed, I put the wheels on the artificial grass, tried to carry a bit more speed but it didn’t work out and I’m disappointed with myself. Finally, congratulations and well done to Lewis on winning the Drivers’ championship, he’s done a really good job this year.”
