Red Bull’s chief technical officer Adrian Newey says he’s been blow away by just how competitive Daniel Ricciardo has been this season.
The Australian halted Mercedes dominance in Canada last time out as he secured his first victory and Red Bull’s first of 2014.
Whilst his speed has impressed, Newey highlighted Ricciardo’s approach behind the wheel as his standout talent.
“Daniel has been massively impressive this year,” said the Briton. “He has certainly exceeded all our expectations.
“What I find amazing about him is how calm he is in the car. When he’s on the radio it’s like he’s sitting down with a cup of tea and driving one-handed. It’s quite remarkable.
“He’s very calm, collected, takes everything in his stride, and he’s really enjoying his job.”
Newey’s comments come just days after Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko revealed that he told Ricciardo’s team-mate and four-time champion Sebastian Vettel to up his game.
Vettel has struggled all season to match Ricciardo and, whilst reliability has hit the German hard, it’s clear that the 24-year-old deserves his seat according to team principal Christian Horner.
“There were questions asked when we chose him as our driver alongside Sebastian and I think he has demonstrated beyond all doubt that he fully deserves that position.”
