Red Bull Racing drivers Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo are currently fifth and sixth in the World Drivers’ Championship. Verstappen has come alive after a rough start to the 2018 season. While Ricciardo’s resultsl seems to be dipping afterhe won two out of the first six GPs.
Is Max Verstappen Dominating Daniel Ricciardo?
Verstappen has scored 173 points against Ricciardo’s 146 points. Since the Monaco Grand Prix, when Ricciardo won his second and last Grand Prix so far, Verstappen has 138 points, while the Australian has scored 74 points. Obviously, Ricciardo obliterated Verstappen 72 to 35 in the first six GPs.
Is the Dutch driver dominating his soon-to-be former teammate? Let us take a look into the numbers.
The Wins
There’s always the need to compare race victories among the drivers with a more than usual chance to win races. Ricciardo has won two in the current campaign, the Chinese Grand Prix and the Monaco Grand Prix. Verstappen, on the other hand, took victory at Red Bull’s home race in Austria.
Ricciardo’s win at Shanghai was a tough lesson for Verstappen. The Dutchman was in front of his teammate and charging through the field after Red Bull’s strategy behind the Safety Car pushed them up front.
However, Verstappen did not manage to get the job done after he collided with Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel at the hairpin of the Shanghai International Circuit and missed his chance of victory. Ricciardo stormed through the field and ran away with a solid win.
Monaco GP was hard for Verstappen too. The Dutchman crashed in FP3 and was not able to participate in the qualifying session. Ricciardo led the three practice sessions, took Pole Position and cruised to victory on Sunday.
At the Austrian GP, Verstappen cemented his win after starting fourth on the grid and overtaking Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen in the first lap and defending his position fiercely. After Mercedes’ drivers DNFed at the Red Bull Ring, Verstappen took the lead in the race, which he certainly earned in his fight with Raikkonen, and won the Grand Prix with a great drive.
The Podiums
The podium number is shocking. While Verstappen has seven podiums to his name, Ricciardo has only stepped on the podium during his victories at China and Monaco.
With only four races left in the calendar, Ricciardo won’t be able to catch Verstappen’s podium numbers. It will be the first time since the Australian started driving for Red Bull that his teammate has scored more podiums than him.
Qualifying and Race Position Finishes
Verstappen has the edge in terms of qualifying (14-3) and race position finishes (12-5). However, Ricciardo is the infamous leader in retirements from races in 2018 with six.
Four retirements due to mechanical issues, one due to rear wing damage after Spa’s first lap disaster and the crash with Verstappen in Azerbaijan has not helped Ricciardo’s last season with Red Bull. Verstappen has four DNFs, two due to mechanical woes and two due to crashes.
The Last Word
Is Verstappen dominating Ricciardo? The cold numbers scream YES, but in reality, the Australian racer has not had all the luck on his side during 2018. Ricciardo’s car has let him down in four different GPs. Also, the Australian received blows to his weekends’ chances four times due to engine failures or grid penalties and Verstappen faced the same problem once (at Russia, where both drivers suffered grid penalties).
