Daniel Ricciardo of Red Bull
For Red Bull racing star Daniel Ricciardo, there is no use being upset over his disqualification tast year at Albert Park. Instead of looking back, Ricciardo looks into the future and says he is excited to kick off the Formula One, or F1 season in his home turf.IN PHOTO: Red Bull Formula One driver Daniel Ricciardo of Australia raises his trophy as he celebrates his third placed finish in the F1 United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas November 2, 2014. REUTERS/Adrees Latif REUTERS/Adrees Latif

Aussie Formula One, or F1, racing star Daniel Ricciardo has dethroned F1 champion Lewis Hamilton in Top Gear’s “Star in a Reasonably Priced Car” challenge. Ricciardo, who competes for Red Bull in F1, had a record-breaking 1:42:2 around the Top Gear Test Track in the latest episode of the popular BBC2 show.

According to Fox Sports Australia, Ricciardo had to miss out on the final day of Red Bull’s first pre-season test in Jerez on Feb. 4 to film his lap. He took the wheel of the Suzuki Liana and broke Hamilton’s record (1:42:9) of the fastest of all F1 drivers to have driven in the improvised circuit. Other F1 stars that have previously made their trips at the Dunsfold Aerodrome for Top Gear’s “Star in a Reasonably Priced Car” include compatriot Mark Webber, Sebastian Vettel, Rubens Barichello and Nigel Mansell.

Ricciardo has already expressed his desire to beat Hamilton’s record in Top Gear during a recent Red Bull event held at Milton Keynes’ Snozone on Feb. 3. He was quoted as saying by Daily Mail that it would be nice to take away at least one title from Hamilton.

With pre-season testing underway and ahead of the season-opening race in Australia on March 15, Ricciardo is optimistic that he will be able to keep up with his performance last season. He said in a pre-season interview that he hopes to pick up from where he left off in 2014. The 2014 season, which marked Ricciardo’s first year with Red Bull, saw him finishing third with 238 points in the World Driver’s Championship. In 2014, Ricciardo also scored F1 wins in Canada, Hungary and Belgium.

Ricciardo said that he doesn’t feel any pressure going into the next season at all. “I think everyone knows now what I’m capable of, so I’m excited, excited to build on what we’ve achieved and learned in 2014,” Ricciardo said. “I’m ready to give Mercedes a good fight.”

As for Ricciardo’s expectations, he insisted that he wants to learn from his experience in 2014. He said that finishing third at the end of the season was already a remarkable feat but he is also looking forward to getting better on the track. He hopes to score more F1 victories that would enable him a chance for the title at the end of the season.

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