He’s known for his larrikin attitude, beaming smile and ‘shoey’ celebrations, but Dan Ricciardo’s suggestive answer to one female reporter’s question left her stunned.
The Australian pulled off an incredible performance in Sunday night’s Italian Formula 1 Grand Prix, weaving through the pack to finish fourth after starting 16th on the grid.
But seemingly caught up in the moment after his remarkable drive, when told by Sky Sports reporter Natalie Pinkham just how excited commentators got as he moved up through the pack, the 28-year-old got rather cheeky.
Australian Formula 1 driver Dan Ricciardo has left a female reporter stunned after asking if her excited colleagues had ‘popped a few buttons’ as he pulled off a remarkable drive in Italian GP
Standing in a packed pit lane after the race in Monza, Ms Pinkham told Ricciardo the commentary crew grew hopeful mid-race that he might pull off a remarkable victory.
‘Our commentators were getting really excited,’ she told Ricciardo.
‘Did they take their top off?’ he said. ‘Pop a few buttons?’
Seemingly taken back by his response, an awkward silence fell over the interview for a moment before Ms Pinkham moved back to racing.
‘Maybe, maybe, maybe,’ she said, before asking about a diving overtake he pulled on competitor Kimi Raikkonen.
His exchange with Ms Pinkham isn’t the first time the pair have shared a moment on camera, with Ricciardo throwing her into a pool at the Monaco GP in May this year.
At the completion of a poolside interview prior to the Monaco event, Ricciardo asked Ms Pinkham for a hand to help him up – before pushing her into the water.
Standing in a packed pit lane after the race in Monza, Ms Pinkham told Ricciardo (pictured) the commentary crew grew hopeful mid-race that he might pull off a remarkable victory.
Ricciardo’s known for his larrikin attitude, beaming smile and ‘shoey’ celebrations
As always, the pair later shared a laugh, with Ricciardo telling the camera: ‘That’s for last year’.
The Australian’s fourth place finish had the potential to be even higher in the closing moments of the lap, as he quickly gained time on German nemesis Sebastian Vettel.
He now sits fourth in the overall 2017 F1 driver standings, with Lewis Hamilton now on top by just three points after his Italian GP win.