Daniel Ricciardo admits his overriding emotion was relief rather than joy after winning the Monaco Grand Prix this year.

The Australian had a score to settle with Formula 1's most famous race after a botched pit-stop cost him victory in 2016 after dominating all weekend.

Ricciardo would again stake his claim on the streets of Monte Carlo by taking pole this season and this time would convert into a win but only after a very tough race.

“The feeling crossing the line in Monaco was more relief than anything else because that victory was two years in the making. Don’t get me wrong, I was ecstatic, but with everything going on with the car, relief was uppermost," he said.

That was because, during the race, the ERS on his Red Bull failed, leaving him with only the V6 engine to power him which at most circuits would usually end in retirement.

"I didn’t think I could hold on," he recalled. "I saw Seb [Vettel] ready to pounce and thought ‘oh boy’.

"I was losing so much time on the straights, the only way I could stay in front of him was to go very quickly in the corners, which was chewing up the tyres. I assumed I wouldn’t have them left to defend at the end of the race.

“After a while though, I got into a rhythm and started to believe I could hold him off – and by halfway I believed I could do it. That’s when the brakes started to fail!

"They became critical during a Virtual Safety Car period and the team thought we’d be retiring the car at the restart – but they didn’t tell me that!”

Ultimately, the slow pace of the race due to tyre wear came to Ricciardo's aid and he got his redemption for 2016 and what will likely be his last chance for a few years as he heads off to Renault in 2019.