2016 World Champion Nico Rosberg says Daniel Ricciardo was one of his most feared drivers during a race weekend.
Daniel Ricciardo was chosen as Red Bull’s pick for their 2014 F1 seat. He replaced fellow Aussie Mark Webber and was paired up with defending World Champion Sebastian Vettel.
Vettel won the championship for 4 consecutive years between 2010 and 2013. And was touted to equal Michael Schumacher’s record of 5 consecutive titles.
But Ricciardo would outperform his senior teammate and secure 3rd place in the standings. While Vettel had no wins in 2014, Ricciardo won 3 races and added 8 podium finishes.
The Aussie had a reputation for late-breaking in the corners and overtaking. The Aussie would chase down his opponents and break later giving him a pace advantage.
This style was a particularly risky manoeuvre, but Ricciardo performed it with ease. And with his Red Bull’s tuned to his needs, the Honey Badger was a threat to anyone in his poaching distance.
One of the drivers he raced with at the time was Nico Rosberg. When compared to the Red Bull cars, Rosberg had a much faster Mercedes. But the 2016 Champion too believed seeing Ricciardo in his rearview mirror was not a preferred site.
Nico admitted in a podcast to Daniel about the Aussie’s unique attacking style. “When you appeared in my rearview mirrors, it was not a nice feeling!”
The two drivers recollected their collision in 2015 Hungaria GP. A later breaking move by Ricciardo resulted in Rosberg’s collision with him. Rosberg suffered a puncture because of the incident.
He adds, “Because I knew I was at the highest risk of losing my position now. I’ll give you credit for that. I always had a feeling ‘Oh no, not him again. It could anybody.”
Also Read: Christian Horner claims Daniel Ricciardo is not the same F1 driver as he as with Red Bull
Nico Rosberg gives Daniel Ricciardo ‘confidential’ tips
Nico Rosberg revealed that Daniel Ricciardo’s driving style was one of the best he had seen. But revealed that there were certain flaws in his driving style which the 2016 Champion observed.
Rosberg said, “You kind of know when you had to go for the lunge. When you go lap after lap, you know when the lunge is coming.”
Rosberg then proceeds to give Ricciardo some ‘confidential’ tips regarding Engine braking and rear brake bias. He bleeped out the configurations as the details are confidential.
Rosberg says these small details allowed him to win the World Championship in 2016. He made a pass on Max Verstappen which was crucial on him winning the title in Abu Dhabi.
Rosberg adds, “If I had the slightest lock on the front tyre, I would have run into Max. But I knew I had to make the move. My engineer said to me nervously, ‘we need to make a move now or we will lose the championship.'”
Rosberg adds that it is paramount that a driver must adapt to all scenarios and know the best modes of a car. And these brilliant moves played a great part in allowing him to win races.
