Home

Former F1 Driver Recalls How Teammate Daniel Ricciardo Made Him Suffer at Toro Rosso

Published 10/27/2021, 6:00 AM EDT

Jean-Eric Vergne, currently competing in Formula-E, was quite straightforward with his F1 career. The Frenchman’s sole target was to score podiums and wins, which meant that he hardly had the opportunity to celebrate top-10 finishes with Toro Rosso. Then, things got worse when Daniel Ricciardo joined him in 2012.

The Australian was all smiles irrespective of how good or bad he performed on the track, while Vergne was quite the contrast to Ricciardo’s personality.

Vergne’s far-fetched goals denied him of any celebrations even when he managed to come home in P8 with a mid-field car (Toro Rosso) in hand. Hence, Vergne opened up about how he suffered from the comparisons with the Honey Badger.

Article continues below this ad

What did the former Daniel Ricciardo teammate say?

During a podcast, Vergne felt that his outfit characterized him as a rather ‘moody’ driver as he cherished none of his own or the team’s successes.

“I had this image within Red Bull of this, you know, French, moody driver. And I suffered from the comparison of Ricciardo that regardless if he was behind me or in front of me, or last, or tenth, or sixth, he always had the same smile,” he told F1’s Beyond the Grid podcast.

“People like that about him and I was a little bit the opposite. So, if I would to come back, I would enjoy a lot more, eighth or sixth position and I think I would be a bit stronger, politically speaking, in the Red Bull family. I think I was a bit too nice, but you know, that comes with experience. That’s the way it was.”

Vergne reckons he was the better driver

Article continues below this ad

The French lad opined that 2013 was his best season, despite losing out to his teammate in the championship. Although Vergne enjoyed a commendable start to the season, the frequent DNFs prevented him from defeating Ricciardo, the second time in a row.

“I had very good results in F1. I scored more points than Daniel in one of the two seasons that we were teammates. On the last year, I think I was a lot better, I think it was a little bit of bad luck,” he said.

Article continues below this ad

Overall, both Vergne and Ricciardo are enjoying a decent campaign in Formula E and Formula 1, respectively. While the former signed off the 2021 season by claiming P10 in the standings, Ricciardo is still amidst a tough fight to claim his second consecutive top 5 finish in the championship. But, will he?

Watch Story: Shortest F1 Drivers Ever Featuring Yuki Tsunoda & Lando Norris

SHARE THIS ARTICLE :

Written by:

Rohit Kumar is an F1 author at EssentiallySports. He has been an ardent follower of the racing series since 2007, with his love for the sport coinciding with his love for Kimi Raikkonen. He is also an ardent follower of Sebastian Vettel and Aston Martin Racing.

Former F1 Driver Recalls How Teammate Daniel Ricciardo Made Him Suffer at Toro Rosso

What did the former Daniel Ricciardo teammate say?

Trending

Daniel Ricciardo To Be Replaced by Liam Lawson After Miami, F1 Pundit Dishes Out Harsh Verdict After Australian’s “Amateur Mistake”

Max Verstappen Sabotaged Daniel Ricciardo’s Only Chance of Getting the Red Bull Seat for 2025

F1 Rumor: Christian Horner and Wife Geri to Publicly Reveal All Details on Leaked Chat Scandal

Charles Leclerc Joins Lewis Hamilton’s Close Friend Irina Shayk for a Vogue Shoot

Carlos Sainz Blames Charles Leclerc for Causing Fred Vasseur’s Painful Chinese GP Loss

Vergne reckons he was the better driver