Ricciardo impressed by Hartley's perseverance

Daniel Ricciardo hailed the return to the Red Bull family of Brendon Hartley, saying he has been impressed with the Kiwi's perseverance and tenacity.

The 28-year-old F1 rookie, who stepped up to the big time at the end of this year with Toro Rosso, was given a shot at stardom with Red Bull when he was just 18-years-old.

He was dropped however from the energy drink company's junior squad in 2010. But Hartley picked himself up and put his skills to work in other categories of racing, mainly in the World Endurance Championship where he achieved outstanding success with Porsche.

• Hartley: Tough start was 'perfect introduction' to F1

Red Bull gave the 2017 Le Mans winner a second chance when he was included in Toro Rosso's end-of-season line-up along with Pierre Gasly following the departures of Carlos Sainz and Dany Kvyat.

"I think in Brendon's case, the decisive factor was perseverance," says Daniel Ricciardo.

"He was in the Red Bull family and left, and after that he was in different series, including retro cars. He was always trying to punch his way back.

"He was constantly calling, harassing different people -- 'Give me a chance, let me drive'. And in the end with the results, it began to work out."

The Aussie is also impressed by the fact that his Kiwi 'cousin' achieved it all very much on his own.

"He did everything himself -- he doesn't have a rich family or anything. He created opportunities for himself, and Red Bull appreciated that and gave him a second chance.

"I think he's much more mature now and is able to cope with the pressure," Ricciardo added.

Gallery: The beautiful wives and girlfriends of F1 drivers

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter