Verstappen profits from Ricciardo's support: 'Does his job well'

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Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing team
9 July 2023 at 10:00
Last update 9 July 2023 at 13:29
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  • Matt Gretton
  • Editor-in-Chief

Daniel Ricciardo is very valuable behind the scenes for Red Bull Racing. So says F1 championship leader Max Verstappen who still has a good relationship with his former teammate and current reserve driver.

Verstappen made his debut at Red Bull Racing in 2016 alongside Ricciardo and proved faster than the Australian. Ricciardo left Red Bull, and via Renault and McLaren, he rejoined Red Bull as the third driver in 2023. There, he is of great value to Verstappen.

Ricciardo of value to Verstappen

Nu.nl quotes Verstappen: "Daniel does a good job in the simulator. But I am not amazed by that. Of course, he had difficult years at McLaren, but you don't lose your talent. And of course, he has a lot of experience. I think he is comfortable in his field with us. He says so himself"

According to Verstappen, Ricciardo is rested. He has pressed the reset button, so to speak, and feels in place at Red Bull. Verstappen: "He has of course already been with us. At the moment he is back in the simulator. He listens a lot with us and asks a lot. I know him very well, so we can talk about everything. About testing, the simulator, about what he thinks about certain things, future parts, things like that."