Ricciardo advises Verstappen to listen to senior drivers

Red Bull Tag Heuer driver Daniel Ricciardo, outlined what he feels are teammate Max Verstappen’s strengths and weaknesses, in an interview with Motorsports.com. The Australian says that the Dutchman’s determination is one of his greatest strengths and his ability to push the car beyond its limits are commendable. But he feels that Verstappen’s age is a stumbling block for him. Ricciardo clarified his comments by saying that his teammate’s age with regard to the sport is not the issue, but his age in life. He cited last season as an example where a number of senior drivers like Raikkonen and Vettel had issues with Verstappen’s defensive tactics.

“A lot of the older drivers would say: ‘Look, we don’t think this is right’, or something. And Max would be like ‘I know what I’m doing’ kind of thing. You know, that’s a strength that he is independent, but may be a weakness… But that will come with time, and he will then understand maybe a little bit of probably advice from the older guys.” said the Aussie.

When asked about working alongside the Dutchman, he said that they work well together and their setups have merged due to them pushing each other. I always try and learn from everyone,” said Ricciardo about working with Verstappen. “I think because driving is such a technical sport, there’s always something different you can apply. A different technique or whatever, a way to set the car up. Honestly, I can’t say there’s one place where I’m like: ‘Well, I learned that from Max.’ If it’s in technique or braking or something, I think you learn these things subconsciously. Because we are both very motivated and very determined to win, we are constantly pushing each other, but also our engineers are trying to really find a way to make the car different.”

Ricciardo has admitted that winning a title this season may not be a possibility, owing to the slow start to the season, but he remains confident that an opportunity may arise in the future. “I think we have to see how the rest of this year goes. I think if we can really have a strong second half of the season, a bit like last year, then I think we could produce something better for next year.” said the driver popularly known as ‘The Honey Badger’, “So I think what happens in the second half of this year will then make a big difference to next year. And then hopefully that can create a championship winning car. Let’s hope. Let’s hope it’s within the next 18 months.”

Ricciardo has long been linked to a move to Ferrari should the opportunity present itself, but he is adamant that his loyalty lies with Red Bull. All he wants is a competitive car under him, instead of being bowled over by history.

“You think F1, I guess you think Ferrari. So sure there is some history with probably most drivers in that team, but for me, I probably don’t get too sentimental with that process, especially now that I haven’t won a championship. I would be more looking at a team that’s going to win me a title as opposed to a team that’s got a better story. So whoever that is, obviously in the future, who knows. At least now, as I said, the next 18 months I really hope that’s Red Bull.”