Daniel Ricciardo F1 Career Was on an Upward Trajectory- Until Max Verstappen ‘Crunch Time’ Red Bull Entry Rained on DR3 Parade

Daniel Ricciardo was once a rising star in the Red Bull Racing team. He impressed everyone with his performances in Toro Rosso in 2012 and 2013 while fighting for the midfield. But he really shined when he eventually got the opportunity to drive for the main team at the start of the 2014 season.

He outperformed his then 4-time world champion teammate Sebastian Vettel in his first season for Red Bull. After that, he was the main guy on the Austrian team until the arrival of Max Verstappen. Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko believes that Verstappen joining Red Bull affected the trajectory of the Aussie driver’s career.

“Even before he came to Red Bull Racing, his career was on an upward trajectory the whole time. In his first year at Red Bull Racing, he beat Vettel by three wins to nil. Max coming on the scene was a crunch point in his career.”

“Rather than taking up the fight, he wanted to keep his distance. And you know what happened next. That’s too bad! He was always nice to work with. His speed is comparable to that of Max, but he’s just lacking that ultimate consistency,” said the Austrian.

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Yet he was complimentary of the Honey Badger and his skills behind the wheel. He also described how Ricciardo impressed him in his first Red Bull test.

Red Bull advisor recalls how Daniel Ricciardo stunned him in his test

Marko mentioned that the amazing car control of the driver, who is also known as Honey Badger, impressed him. He recalled this one particular moment Ricciardo caught his eye while driving for them.

“A cheerful, natural talent with outstanding car control. I remember at the very first selection, he came out of the final bend with the back of the car way out, but he managed to get it back under control and even ended up making up some time.”

“Daniel gets into the car and is fast straight from the off,” said Marko.

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The 2018 season was a pivotal moment in the career of the Australian driver. For 2019, he decided to leave the team and joined Renault to look for greener pastures. It would have been interesting to find out how his career would have shaped up had he continued racing for the Milton Keynes-based team.