Ricciardo produces breathtaking drive to win Hungarian Grand Prix

Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel is going nowhere just yet, despite suggestions that the four-times world champion might be feeling restless at Milton Keynes. But he must be looking back with some nostalgia to the days when he had Mark Webber as his team-mate. It was a feisty relationship but on the track the German had the Australian in the pocket of his overalls.

Daniel Ricciardo, though, is something else. In his first season at Red Bull he is outdriving his more distinguished colleague and is 43 points ahead, in third place in the standings with Vettel sixth.

Ricciardo produced another breathtaking drive here yesterday, even though the early introduction of the safety car worked against the pole-sitter, Nico Rosberg, and the other leading cars. It brought him his second win of the season, to go with his victory in Canada last month.

Those in charge of Formula One held another meeting at the weekend to discuss the sport’s poor promotion and why the crowd was so poor in Germany a week ago. Remarkably, for a sport with a £1 billion turnover, there is no marketing department. The sport at the cutting, innovative edge of new technology inhabits the dark ages. It is left to the media to promote it.

But races such as we had here do much to cheer up the world of vroom vroom, which has been told that TV audiences are on the slide. With a couple of dud exceptions, the racing has been outstanding this season.

Downpour

A downpour less than an hour before the start of the race made it a nightmare for the teams when it came to selecting their rubber, with the choice between intermediates and full rain tyres. Forecasts of further rain - which never came - further complicated the issue.

“It’s like a slippery thing out there,” said Jenson Button, whose McLaren team – who have announced they are not trying to sign Valtteri Bottas from Williams – appeared to think that there would be more rain. Button finished 10th.

“We obviously use different radar to everyone else,” the British driver said. “I feel like I did everything right, and in every track condition, which is why it is tough. I had put the car in a good place but then we threw it all away.”

The combination of rain and safety cars livened up a race in which overtaking can often be difficult. But Ricciardo, 25, always looked the fastest driver in the closing stages and fully deserved his win. Crucially, though, he was the beneficiary of the safety car, when he was able to duck into the pits for a set of slick tyres.

“The first victory was very special but it leaves you hungry for more,” he said. “This feels just as good. When I crossed the line everything felt a bit more real. I guess I took it in a bit more this time. It feels awesome.”

Vettel was speaking for himself when he said: “It wasn’t a great race. I spun, which was my mistake, and before that I was unlucky with the safety car in the first stint. The timing meant the first four cars lost positions to those running behind. Unfortunately we were then in the wrong mode for the restart and I lost two positions. It’s good for Daniel that he won today. I’m happy for him.”

Red Bull’s team principal, Christian Horner, has been under pressure this season after an epoch of sensational success. His team have been replaced by Mercedes as top dogs and there are problems with the Renault engine.

But he was grinning with relief when he said last night: “It was a fantastic grand prix and the performance by Daniel today was truly sensational. Starting in wet conditions, he benefited from being a little bit further back at the first safety car and then really managed to make his strategy work on the soft tyres through the next stages of the race.

“We knew we’d have to make a final stop, which would put us behind Alonso and Hamilton who were trying to get to the end. But he closed the gap down quickly and then, with some fantastic overtaking manoeuvres in the last five laps, pulled off a dramatic victory.”

Talking about Vettel, Horner said: “Sebastian’s afternoon was much more frustrating. Unfortunately, after a good start and some good battles, he got the call at the same time as Daniel, but was too far round the last corner to make it into the pit lane.

“He then had to stop under the safety car which meant he lost some places. He was making progress but then had the spin and managed to avoid the pit wall but he flat-spotted his tyres and then had a problem at the restart.

“It was then a question of damage limitation.” Guardian Service