Motor Racing: Daniel Ricciardo Rwarded The Formula 1 Honour

DANIEL Ricciardo’s winning ways on track and winning attitude off it has earned him one of Formula 1’s most prestigious awards. Ahead of this weekend’s Italian Grand Prix, Ricciardo has been awarded this year’s Trofeo Lorenzo Bandini in recognition of his speed, his on-track achievements, and his approach to the sport. The honour roll of previous winners reads like a list of the sport’s modern greats, with Michael Schumacher, Fernando Alonso, Kimi Raikkonen and Ricciardo’s Red Bull teammate Sebastian Vettel all previous recipients. He was presented with the trophy in the main square of Bandini’s home town of Brisighella in the north of Italy, a stone’s throw from the headquarters of Ricciardo’s old Scuderia Toro Rosso team at Faenza. Hundreds of fans filled the square for the ceremony, where Ricciardo’s arrival was heralded by a band of drummers and trumpeters dressed in full medieval costume, along with knights dressed in full chain mail and armour. "I was quite overwhelmed with the reception I received at the event. The Italians really love their motorsport," Ricciardo said. "To be awarded with the Lorenzo Bandini trophy was an honour and to join the many great drivers on that list makes me proud." The award is named after Lorenzo Bandini, Italy’s great Formula 1 hope of the 1960s. Bandini was a Ferrari driver through and through, rising through the ranks to become the team leader of the Maranello marque. An F1 race winner, Bandini also tasted victory in the Le Mans 24 Hours and the legendary Targa Florio road race. His career was cut tragically short in 1967. A fiery crash late in the Monaco Grand Prix left him with third degree burns to over 70 per cent of his body. He would die three days later at just 31 years of age. His fighting spirit was held dear by his home town, who first presented the trophy to mark the 25th anniversary of Bandini’s death, but is now awarded annually to figures within the sport as determined by a panel of judges. Ricciardo is the second Australian to be awarded the trophy, following in the footsteps of Mark Webber in 2006. After being presented with the trophy by the mayor of Brisighella and Bandini’s surviving 80-year-old sister Gabriella, he was awarded a medal of the town of Ficarra, the little community in Sicily where Ricciardo’s grandparents and father lived before emigrating to Australia. TROFEO LORENZO BANDINI RECIPIENTS 1992 — Ivan Capelli 1995 — David Coulthard 1996 — Jacques Villeneuve 1997 — Luca di Montezemolo 1998 — Giancarlo Fisichella 1999 — Alexander Wurz 2000 — Jarno Trulli 2001 — Jenson Button 2002 — Juan Pablo Montoya 2003 — Michael Schumacher 2004 — Kimi Raikkonen 2005 — Fernando Alonso 2006 — Mark Webber 2007 — Felipe Massa 2008 — Robert Kubica 2009 — Sebastian Vettel 2010 — Lewis Hamilton 2011 — Nico Rosberg 2012 — Bruno Senna 2013 — Piero Ferrari 2014 — Daniel Ricciardo Originally published as Ricciardo awarded F1 honour