Daniel Ricciardo has described Red Bull team-mate Max Verstappen as far more intelligent and knowledgeable about racing than he expected.
The 18-year-old joined Ricciardo ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix after replacing the ineffective Daniil Kvyat.
And Ricciardo has been surprised by Verstappen’s impact, which saw him win his first race of the campaign, and give the Australian a fair race.
"It's not nice getting beaten by someone young," Ricciardo said.
"I definitely see it now, he is young, but in racing terms he is very experienced.
"Racing has been his whole life, from what I understand, and although he may still have a lot to learn, for his age, he has plenty of racing experience.
"Even the way when he's in engineering briefings and talking about some details on the car, I don't even know what they are.
"He's a bit of a racing nerd, I guess!"
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Daniel Ricciardo has described Red Bull team-mate Max Verstappen as far more intelligent and knowledgeable about racing than he expected.
The 18-year-old joined Ricciardo ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix after replacing the ineffective Daniil Kvyat.
And Ricciardo has been surprised by Verstappen’s impact, which saw him win his first race of the campaign, and give the Australian a fair race.
"It's not nice getting beaten by someone young," Ricciardo said.
"I definitely see it now, he is young, but in racing terms he is very experienced.
"Racing has been his whole life, from what I understand, and although he may still have a lot to learn, for his age, he has plenty of racing experience.
"Even the way when he's in engineering briefings and talking about some details on the car, I don't even know what they are.
"He's a bit of a racing nerd, I guess!"
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