Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner believes Daniel Ricciardo will spring a surprise in 2014.
The Australian driver will replace countryman Mark Webber, who moves to Porsche and their LMP1 programme, after two seasons at Toro Rosso.
He has shown strong raw speed on one lap, often dragging the STR8 into the top 10 in 2013 when it really shouldn't have been there, and has scored some impressive results. Horner feels he has the mindset to race at Red Bull and will be capable of racing at the front.
"I think he could be a bit of a surprise because he is very quick," he told AUTOSPORT. "He is going to have a lot to learn but I think he will surprise quite a few people with the pace he has."
He added: "He has dragged massive qualifying performances out of the Toro Rosso, which obviously is sub-standard, and he has continued to impress us with how he has raced, how he has delivered and performed with the tools at his disposal.
"If you look at the pressure points with him, even if his weekend doesn’t get off to a great start he recovers it. He seems to have the ability not to panic, but to put it together when it counts. Sometimes he’s had difficult Fridays, or even Saturday mornings, but when qualifying starts, nine times out of 10 he is there."
The 40-year-old thinks that with the new regulation changes for next season, it was the right time to promote the Aussie: "It is probably the right time in many respects. It’s a change in so many aspects that now is the time to change the driver. Of course, he is pretty well known to us anyway so it’s not like introducing a complete stranger."
Ricciardo agrees, telling the same news outlet: "He has been so dominant with the car over the last few years. If there were no changes, then he would probably continue to be dominant.
"At least with this change now it could make the playing field a bit more even. Hopefully he's not as dominant with this new package as he has been. It definitely brings some things more into my favour."
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He has shown strong raw speed on one lap, often dragging the STR8 into the top 10 in 2013 when it really shouldn't have been there, and has scored some impressive results. Horner feels he has the mindset to race at Red Bull and will be capable of racing at the front.
"I think he could be a bit of a surprise because he is very quick," he told AUTOSPORT. "He is going to have a lot to learn but I think he will surprise quite a few people with the pace he has."
He added: "He has dragged massive qualifying performances out of the Toro Rosso, which obviously is sub-standard, and he has continued to impress us with how he has raced, how he has delivered and performed with the tools at his disposal.
"If you look at the pressure points with him, even if his weekend doesn’t get off to a great start he recovers it. He seems to have the ability not to panic, but to put it together when it counts. Sometimes he’s had difficult Fridays, or even Saturday mornings, but when qualifying starts, nine times out of 10 he is there."
The 40-year-old thinks that with the new regulation changes for next season, it was the right time to promote the Aussie: "It is probably the right time in many respects. It’s a change in so many aspects that now is the time to change the driver. Of course, he is pretty well known to us anyway so it’s not like introducing a complete stranger."
Ricciardo agrees, telling the same news outlet: "He has been so dominant with the car over the last few years. If there were no changes, then he would probably continue to be dominant.
"At least with this change now it could make the playing field a bit more even. Hopefully he's not as dominant with this new package as he has been. It definitely brings some things more into my favour."
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