Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner warned four-time Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton that it would be very foolish to underestimate Daniel Ricciardo.
Four-time Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton recently told Motorsport.com who he believes are the best four drivers in Formula One today. With one of them obviously being himself, as he has won three of the last four championships, he essentially picked the next best three.
Hamilton named Fernando Alonso, Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen as the other three drivers who he believes are currently among the best four in the sport along with himself.
However, Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner did not agree with his list. While Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen did make the list, the team’s other driver, Daniel Ricciardo, did not. Horner issued a warning to Hamilton after he heard about his top four drivers.
Here is what Horner had to say about Hamilton’s list, according to News.com.
"“Lewis would be very foolish to underestimate Daniel. He’s a phenomenal driver, he’s arguably the best overtaker in the business. He’s driven some great races this year and some great races in his time at Red Bull. He’s absolutely ready for a championship challenge if we can provide him with the tools to do the job.”"
Ricciardo has been a full-time Formula One driver for six seasons now. He began his career in the sport in the 2012 season driving for Scuderia Toro Rosso, where he stayed until the end of the 2013 season. Since then, he has not left Red Bull Racing.
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So far in his six-year Formula One career, the 28-year-old has racked up five victories, including one this past season in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix en route to a 5th place finish in the drivers standings. His season-high win total is three, which took place back in the 2014 season en route to a 3rd place finish in the drivers standings, which is tied for his career-high finish in the standings with his 3rd place result in the 2016 season, the season in which his only unaccounted for victory came.
If given the right equipment, there is no doubt that Ricciardo could contend for championships. After all, of the 14 races that he actually finished in the 20-race 2017 season, he finished outside of the top 5 just once and he finished on the podium nine times. Reliability issues late in the season were the cause of him not finishing in the top 4 in the final standings, and they were the primary cause of him being forced to retire six times throughout the season.
Next: Who is the greatest Formula One driver of all-time?
Will Red Bull Racing give Daniel Ricciardo the car he needs to contend for the 2018 Formula One championship, or will he end up being out of title contention again and then leaving for a team like Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport or Scuderia Ferrari in the 2019 season in an attempt to win his first career title at that time?