Webber: 'Ricciardo the most reliable driver in F1'

Mark Webber believes that what you see is what you get with Daniel Ricciardo, saying his countryman can be relied on 'to deliver week-in and week-out'.

Speaking to Red Bull Australia, Webber assessed F1's front runners but naturally shows emphatic support for the Honey Bedger. 

"Daniel is just so solid on Sunday afternoons, he's the most reliable driver in F1 in that you know what he's going to deliver week-in, week-out," he said. 

"He's always got the most out of what they've given him and it's hard to see how he could have done much more."

Like many, Webber has been disappointed by the performance of his former squad this season.

"We all expected such great things from this car this year, but it came out of the box very poorly. They had a lot of catching up to do.

"With Renault, it's unfortunately a little bit of a broken record, 'we haven't got this, we haven't got that' – it's been going on for five years. Red Bull have to make a car a second faster than everyone else, maybe." 

• Verstappen doubts Red Bull can measure up to rivals

Looking at Max Verstappen, Webber believes the teenager would benefit from cleaner free practice sessions in which he says the Dutch charger has appeared 'flaky'.

"Max has probably been a bit flaky in terms of the build-up to the races through the weekend," said Aussie Grit.

"He's been going off the road a lot on Friday and Saturday, which puts pressure on mechanics getting the car ready. I'd like to see him on the road a bit more, but he's pushing the limits.

"When it comes to Sundays, he hasn't made many mistakes at all, it's been a lot of high-profile reliability retirements where he's lost a truckload of points, so that's been hard for him to swallow."

Webber has been impressed with Lewis Hamilton however, labeling the Brit the best qualifier in F1 since Ayrton Senna.

"Both he and [Sebastian Vettel] have driven awesome this year, and Lewis particularly in qualifying has been very strong," he said.

"He's the best since Senna over one lap – he's very special on Saturdays."

Finally, despite McLaren-Honda's growing pains, Webber still sees his pal Fernando Alonso as the best racer in the field.

"It's been a big shame for Formula 1, a big shame for Honda, a big shame for McLaren," he says.

"They loaded their guns up and got Fernando back there waiting for the engine to fire, but it hasn't happened.

"He's been biting his tongue for the last 24 months, and he can't drive the thing any harder. His stock is still incredible, and on Sundays he's probably the best in the world. That's the frustrating bit."

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