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Is Verstappen Ricciardo's best opponent? ''Statistics speak for themselves''

Is Verstappen Ricciardo's best opponent? ''Statistics speak for themselves''

16-04-2020 07:40 Last update: 10:03

GPblog.com

Because of the coronavirus, the whole world and therefore Formula 1 is at a standstill. However, Daniel Ricciardo isn't sitting still and so he comes up with something new to keep himself busy: Dan's Diary, is the solution to his problems.

Dan's Diary

In his diary, Ricciardo wants to publish his thoughts on Formula 1, drivers, teams and all kinds of other topics on Twitter and Facebook every month to give an insight into Formula 1. For this week Ricciardo went back into his thoughts: How many drivers have I raced against and could I list them all?'

From that idea another idea arose. The best person he has ridden against is clear, as he says in the diary. ''Who was the best opponent that can be seen in the statistics', says Ricciardo, who probably points to Verstappen, who beat him, together with Jean-Eric Vergne and Daniil Kvyat, over an entire season.

Jules and Charles

However, the best story comes from the most underrated drivers, where Ricciardo also mentions Jules Bianchi. ''Jules wasn't necessarily underappreciated, but we never saw him in a fast car. Jules' performance in Monaco and also in Macau was exceptional. In my opinion Charles Leclerc is now doing what Jules could have done, but as a delayed version'', says the Australian.

Ricciardo also mentions Marcus Ericsson, Vitantonio Liuzzi, Robert Mehri and world champion Jenson Button, who, according to Ricciardo, was particularly impressive by beating Lewis Hamilton in 2011. Robert Kubica and Paul di Resta also receive an honourable mention from the Renault rider.