Fresh from topping the timesheets during pre-season testing in Barcelona, Daniel Ricciardo joked there’s money to be made by betting on him for world championship glory.
The Australian clocked a 1:18.047 around the Circuit de Catalunya — an unofficial lap record — on day two of the second and final Test before urging fans and friends to get behind him with bookmakers.
Most betting agencies have the Australian at 10:1 odds to win his first world drivers’ title this year and when learning of his juicy odds Ricciardo joked: « I’m not personally a betting man but a lot of my mates are, so if they’re listening throw a cheeky $75,000 on it. »
Ricciardo has made strong progress with Red Bull’s new RB14, completing a whopping 165 laps during an action-packed day in Spain. It came a day after teammate Max Verstappen set 130 laps for the third quickest time.
The team’s progress has Ricciardo confident ahead of the season-opening race in Melbourne on March 25.
« I feel where our car was good last year we’ve made that even better, so our strengths have become stronger, » Ricciardo said. « I still think we need to find a bit more to realistically match Mercedes, but I don’t think we’re far behind.
« I think we are better than we were 12 months ago, let’s say that much. »
http://www.espn.com/f1/story/_/id/22682445/formula-1-daniel-ricciardo-jokes-mega-payday-bold-punters-barcelona
