Put ‘baby-faced assassin’ Daniel Ricciardo behind the wheel of a Mercedes and there would be no doubt he would take the Formula One title race to the wire, according to compatriot Alan Jones, Australia’s last world champion.

The only driver to have beaten Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg to the top of the podium this campaign, Ricciardo won a dramatic Hungarian Grand Prix on Sunday to seal his second victory of the season, underlining his class with a high-quality drive and further shading Red Bull team-mate Sebastian Vettel.

Ricciardo’s success has raised Australian hopes of a first F1 title-holder since Jones’ 1980 triumph, and the former Williams driver said the expectation was justified.

“He’s a contender, there’s no doubt about it,” the 67-year-old said.

“He’s not a contender this year obviously because Mercedes have got the jump on everyone. Get him a good car next year. If you put that (Mercedes engine) in that bloody Red Bull, he would be a contender.

“Or get him a Mercedes, because he’s proven he can qualify consistently in the top four. He can run up there with the best of them. He doesn’t pile up the road or have any accidents.”

After a two-year apprenticeship with feeder team Toro Rosso, Ricciardo has proved a revelation this season, mounting the podium five times, including a maiden win in Canada last month.

Sunday’s win in Hungary put him third in the standings behind the Mercedes pair, 71 points adrift of Rosberg and 60 below Hamilton with eight races remaining.

While Ricciardo has benefited from safety car interventions in both victories, his calm in a frenetic finish in Hungary, in which the top four drivers were separated by little more than six seconds, left few in doubt he belongs in the A-grade.

Ricciardo has also had to vie for top honours with a Renault engine, which remains well off the pace of the Mercedes power unit, according to team principal Christian Horner.

Ricciardo said his aim for the second half of the season, which begins on August 24 with the Belgian Grand Prix in Spa-Francorchamp, was to “just get better”.

“That’s realistic. I’m young, I’ve still got to keep improving,” he said.

“I ain’t getting slower, so let’s keep on this ramp and build.”

Source: Reuters, AAP