Ricciardo names his five most underrated F1 rivals

Daniel Ricciardo has named🐠 five drivers he has raced against during his Formula 1 career as his most underrate༒d rivals.

With the 2020 F1 season delayed by the ongoing coronavirus cris💝is, Ricciardo has reflected on his F1 career so far and picked out the drivers he thinks were unfancied, for a variety of reasons, when looking back꧂ on their respective careers.

Topping the Renault driver’s list is former Sauber and Caterham driver Marcus Ericsson who Ricciardo often battled during his junior career befor🦋e reaching F1.

Ricciardo names his five most underrated F1 rivals

Daniel Ricciardo has named five driver𝐆s he has raced against during his Formula 💝1 career as his most underrated rivals.

W൲ith the 2020 F1 season delayed by the ongoing coronavirus crisis, Ricciardo has reflected on his F1 careꦿer so far and picked out the drivers he thinks were unfancied, for a variety of reasons, when looking back on their respective careers.

Topping the Renault driver’s list is former Sauber and Caterham driver Marcus Ericsson who Rꦐicciardo often battled during his junior career before reaching F1.

“As a junior Marcus was very highly rated and I felt like that reputation didn’t really last when he was in Formula 1,” Ri꧒cciardo said in a letter posted from his Twitter account. “The speed 💎though, that was definitely there.”

Another notable name Ricciardo picks is the lat♏e Jules Bianchi who he felt was destined for F1 greatness before his tragic death following his accident at the 20🐎14 Japanese Grand Prix.

The Australian driver has comꦛpared Charlesജ Leclerc to Bianchi, who was the Ferrari driver’s godfather, and says the success Leclerc is currently producing is what he expected Bianchi to being doing.

“I f🌱eel Charles is doing now what Jules would have been doing,” Ricciardo said. “It’s like Charles is the delayed version of what Jules would have done with the succes༺s he’s having.”

Also mak෴ing Ricciardo’s underrated F1 driver list is his first teammate in the sport Tonio Liuzzi when the pair were at opposite ends of their respective c😼areers in 2011.

Ricciardo says Liuzzi “was 🦹the Schumacher of kartin🐎g” when he was growing up but admits he underestimated the Italian’s speed when they were teammates at HRT.

“I remember Budapest my first year, 2011, and I thought I’d nailed my qualifying lap and he still pipped me, and I was thinking, ‘alright, this guy is quick’. For raw speed, 100 per ce🤡nt he had it,” he explained.

Completing his list is Robert Merhi, who spent one season racing in F1 in 2015, and 2009 world champi🎀on Jenson Button.

Ricciardo says Merhi was another hotly-tipped yo𝔍ungster, having won the 2011 Formula 3 Eur🍌o Series title, but his driving style never suited the F1 cars when he made his debut.

Button, on the other hand, is a driver whose talents Ricciardo feels were not highly thought of during his career. But instead of picking out his title-winning 2009 F1 ♛season, Ricciardo says he was most impressed by his 2011 campಞaign when he beat Lewis Hamilton when the pair were McLaren teammates.

“Jenson had some big years in F1, but I think 2011 when he was teammates with Lewis at McLaren and beat Lewis fair and s﷽quare – that’s no ea🐓sy feat as we all know – was what gets him onto my list,” he explained.

Ricciardo also gave ho💙nourable mentions to Robert Kubica and Paul Di Resta while teasing a second list of his five most over🦄rated drivers.

“I’ve got one,” he said. “But I’ll keep that one in my own head u♍ntil I’m done racing…”

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