Fernando Alonso has not named either of the two Mercedes drivers as the current best on the Formula One grid.
While Nico Rosberg or Lewis Hamilton will walk away with the world championship for the third consecutive year, the McLaren driver instead pointed to the man who has finished just behind them in the championship two of the past three years.
“I would say [Daniel] Ricciardo right now because in the way he approaches racing he’s always very committed to everything he does,” he told the BBC’s Chequered Flag podcast.
“On the track, you cannot see any mistakes when you are together with him.
“In the overtaking manoeuvres, he is probably the best out there. When he commits to one movement, 99 percent of the time he will achieve the result that he wanted.”
The two came to blows on several occasions in 2014, including the German Grand Prix at Hockenheim and in Hungary a week later, when the Australian passed Alonso in the closing laps to take his second F1 win.
YouTube: F1 Hockenheim GP 2014 Fernando Alonso vs Daniel Ricciardo
While Ricciardo had a dip in 2015 from the high of his first year at Red Bull, indeed he was even beaten by Daniil Kvyat in the Drivers’ standings, he has rebounded in 2016 and particularly risen to the challenge of Max Verstappen.
The Aussie produced perhaps his finest qualifying lap to take pole in Monaco and then inherited victory in Malaysia after Hamilton’s engine failure. That win came in the midst of a streak that has seen the 27-year-old claim seven podiums in the last nine races.
Despite that, most of Alonso’s respect for Ricciardo stems from his 2014 performances.
“In 2014, together with Vettel, it was an amazing performance that he showed and he was way ahead of Vettel in every single point – in the driving, in the approach, in the starts, in the pitstops, in the overtaking. He was beating Vettel so easily.”
Upon hearing the Spaniard’s comments, the Red Bull driver admitted it was hard not to be flattered.
“It’s pretty awesome I guess,” Ricciardo said. “I’m not going to lie, you can’t ignore a comment like that in terms of you can’t just say, ‘oh yeah, whatever’.
“Before I got to the sport he was already a double world champion and a guy [that] when I got to the sport I was like, ‘this is one of the big dogs’. In a way, I guess someone you look up too because you look up to what they’ve achieved and you want to be like them and have that success.
“I feel like I earned a lot of his respect and trust on-track in 2014. We had some good battles and I feel like since then we’ve got on pretty well and it’s cool that he thinks that.
“It’s nice that it’s been recognised by a bit of a legend of the sport.”
While McLaren’s struggles have reduced the number of times Alonso and Ricciardo have crossed paths competitively out on the racetrack, the new rules in 2017 could bring the British team and Red Bull closer together next year.
However, it could also mark the final year for the Spaniard in F1 as he makes his decision over whether the new era cars meet his need exciting, flat-out racing.
Alonso’s choice is certainly a damning verdict on the Mercedes pair and particularly Lewis Hamilton. It also basically says that in F1 right now, it is the car that decides who becomes champion rather than being a battle between the best drivers on the grid.
Still, while it may be hard to argue against the claim it has been the dominance of his car that has allowed the Briton to achieve his recent success, in equal machinery, many would still see Hamilton and even Alonso himself as the men to beat.
