Ricciardo set for huge 2015 season

After a whirlwind Formula One season which yielded three race victories and a surprise third place finish in the Driver’s Championship, Aussie Daniel Ricciardo has his sights set on even more success in 2015.

With Sebastian Vettel making the switch to Ferrari, Ricciardo has been fast-tracked into the number one driver role for Infiniti Red Bull racing, something the 25-year-old says he will take in his stride.

Ricciardo spoke with Yahoo7 Sport and maintained that the added responsibility won’t affect the way he approaches the 2015 season.

“You know not having let’s say Seb [Vettel] and the experience of him within the team, I don’t know how much it will change,” he said.

“I like to think I’ll be able to take over his role and Danny [Kyvat] will come up and fill maybe my role this year.

“Obviously it was a really good year [last season] and I’ll just try and really build on it. I think naturally having spent 12 months with the team and having the results I had, I should keep growing within the team and as a driver, so I expect next year to be just as good, hopefully even a little bit better.”

Although he downplays his rapid development, the wide-smiling Ricciardo has a fantastic opportunity to cement himself as one of the sport’s top drivers and make a genuine push for the Driver’s Championship.

“In general I think there will just be a natural progression for me, at least mentally going into it not much changes. Just because I’m the older guy it doesn’t really make any difference,” Ricciardo said.

“I’m still going to drive hopefully as fast as I ever have and as I said, I feel I can keep improving.”

The first race of the 2015 Formula One season in Melbourne will provide an opportunity for Ricciardo to make up for the heartbreak of last year’s race, his debut for Infiniti Red Bull. After a scintillating drive on home soil, Ricciardo finished second, only to be disqualified for a breach of fuel regulations.

Despite the disappointment of being disqualified, it’s something he still takes plenty of positives away from.

“I have a lot of great memories to take from that, standing on the podium. It’s something i'll always remember. It’s made me hungrier, but it was great to have that experience and have that feeling.”

Ricciardo who is back in Australia for the Christmas period, met with fans in Melbourne at an Infiniti cars event, giving his supporters a rare chance to get a glimpse inside the glamorous world of the Formula One star.

With a rabid fanbase in tow, his assault on the 2015 Melbourne Grand Prix as well as the Driver’s Championship are sure to be met with even more fanfare this time around. With support for the sport growing in Australia, Ricciardo is enjoying driving the sport forward.

“Formula One has escalated in the past few years and it seems to just be getting bigger and bigger,” he said

“F1 is in a good place, the cars are getting better and so are the races.”