Ricciardo needs to 'blow Vergne apart' to impress Red Bull
Daniel Ricciardo thinks it is essential he 'blows apart' team-mate Jean-Eric Vergne this year if he is to have any hope of landing a Red Bull seat in 2014
Making his first media appearance in Melbourne on Tuesday, the Australian stated that only exceptional performances this year will secure him promotion from Toro Rosso in the event that Mark Webber moves on.
"If myself and Jean-Eric are matching each other this year, it is probably not going to be enough," Ricciardo told selected media including AUTOSPORT at the event in the city.
"I definitely want to try and blow it apart if I can - do something special..."
Ricciardo knows that setting specific result targets now is too difficult because of uncertainty about how competitive Toro Rosso will be in 2013, but he suggests that sights should be set on the podium.
"Podiums would be great but we really have to see where we are, and how competitive we are as a team," he explained.
"Even if the first few races don't go particularly to plan, come the European season we will have quite a few updates and things to be positive about."
When asked for how things were with his team-mate, Ricciardo said: "They are OK and nothing has really changed between us.
"We've been competitive through a few years and the relationship has become more competitive, so to speak, because a lot is on the line.
"I don't think any team-mates are probably great friends. I think Mark can answer that question as well.
"It is just how it is and how it probably should be. If you are too close to someone you will probably not go 110 per cent against them, so it is good to have that fighting spirit."
Be part of the Autosport community
Join the conversationShare Or Save This Story
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments