Four-way battle for F1 glory

Spieth

SEVEN-TIME Formula One race winner Daniel Ricciardo has claimed that Max Verstappen is not the only driver capable of succeeding Lewis Hamilton at the top when the Mercedes man eventually retires from the sport.

Ricciardo, who spent two seasons alongside Verstappen at Red Bull, has backed his former teammate to take over as F1’s dominant force after his Mercedes rival leaves the grid for good.

“I think Max will be at the top for as long as he wants to race,” Ricciardo told RacingNews365.

“Probably that is with him, as with Lewis, that he will go far, can be into his thirties if he wants to.”

Although Ricciardo clearly recognises his ex-Red Bull colleague’s frightening potential, he went on to suggest that the post-Hamilton era could also play out as a closely-fought battle between a number of up-and-coming stars.

Charles Leclerc, Lando Norris and George Russell have all shown flashes of championship-winning potential, with the Aussie driver backing the trio to push Verstappen all the way in future seasons.

“I’ve already worked with a lot of the next generation, Max for example,” explained Ricciardo.

“So you have Max and I think also Charles. We will see how Lando is doing this year, but he already showed that he has what it takes to reach the top.

“I also expect George to be at the front of the field as soon as he gets access to a good car. And then you have guys like (Carlos) Sainz and myself. – Express Newspapers