Vettel ‘ruthless’ but also ‘honest and genuine’

Daniel Ricciardo says Sebastian Vettel is ruthless on the race track, but he proved in 2014 that he is “honest and genuine too”.

Vettel’s four-year spell of dominance came to an end in 2014 with the new regulations, as did his No.1 status at Red Bull after Ricciardo got the better of him during his debut season with the team.

But Ricciardo said that year the four-time World Champion showed he was not only a “ruthless” competitor, but also a “genuine” person.

Asked in an Instagram Live video if he had fond memories of Vettel, Ricciardo said: “I did and I do.

“Really, the thing that I took from that year with Seb was, even through a difficult year by his standards, particularly coming off four [titles] in a row, he was always, as he is, very competitive and ruthless.

“But off the track, he always shook my hand, congratulated me. It seemed that not only was he a good sportsman to me, but he seemed very honest and genuine.

“I obviously respected him from the start, but I think we had respect for each other, and that was cool.

“He does things a little bit old school but I respect that path as well. He is not really influenced by too much. He has his ways and he stands by them.”

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