LONDON, England - Sebastian Vettel behaved impeccably in 2015, despite plotting his Red Bull exit and being out-classed by his rookie team mate Daniel Ricciardo.
That is, at least, what 25-year-old Ricciardo says after establishing himself as an F1 star with three wins so far in 2014 and bout to become No.1 Red Bull driver as Vettel prepares to move to Ferrari.
Ricciardo said that, even as he rattled his quadruple F1 champion team mate's cage in 2014, Vettel dealt with the situation maturely: "He was very respectful to me on the first day and he remained respectful to me after my third win.
'SOME FRUSTRATION'
"I'm sure he would love to have won this season, so there must be some frustration inside, but he has not shown it at any time. It is to his credit that he hasn't said anything to me, or in front of me. Maybe he has behind closed doors but it was not visible to any of us."
Ricciardo also thought Vettel would do a good job for Ferrari in 2015: "Apart from his driving ability that everyone sees on TV, his work ethic, the way he works with the engineers, is very impressive.
"It's been good to see that behind the scenes. I think if he's going to Ferrari or to any other top team, he will play a strong leadership role."
'DANIEL WILL FILL SHOES'
Meanwhile, Red Bull team owner Dietrich Mateschitz thinks Ricciardo is more than ready to play the same sort of leadership role in 2015.
With Vettel having announced his exit, the Mateschitz told the Melbourne Age: "If we did not have a 'team leader' then the situation would look slightly different but we knew that Daniel would fill these shoes, so things were much easier."