Daniel Ricciardo admits he is under no illusion of the challenge he faces against Nico Hulkenberg at Renault this season.
The Australian may have escaped the growing shadow of Max Verstappen at Red Bull, but his new teammate promises to be no pushover either despite Hulkenberg’s reputation as one of Formula 1’s nearly men.
Nico has the unwanted record of the most starts without scoring a podium in F1 history, having never gotten his big break at a top team during his decade on the grid, but Ricciardo knows that doesn’t take away from the talent the German has.
“I’ll certainly take a lot of the highs with me and use them as confidence moving to Renault,” Ricciardo told Motorsport.com.
“And I’ll need that as well because of Nico. I think that everyone who knows F1 knows his calibre.
“From the outside, you can think that he’s done 200 races or whatever and never had a podium, but we all know he isn’t that level of driver.
“So I know I’ll need to bring all of this, not only to beat him but also to help fast-track the team to progress.”
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Before fully immersing himself in his new environment for 2019, Ricciardo did take a final opportunity to reflect on his Red Bull career, with one moment forever etched in his memory.
“I’ll still hold onto Monaco forever because the aftermath of all that was the biggest high I’ve ever had,” the 29-year-old said.
“Walking back into the Energy Station that day after doing all the press – just seeing everyone…It was full, and I got a standing ovation, and I was so proud that everyone was so happy for me.
“I do this for myself, this sport, and the day I stop loving it I’ll stop. Having that effect and making so many other people happy, that was awesome.
“That moment made me feel like I’m not just doing this for myself.”
