Daniel Ricciardo showed one Lewis Hamilton fan the finger while filming Top Gear (Image: Getty)
One Formula 1 fan found out the hard way not to get on ‘s bad side. And one question about was all it took to touch the wrong nerve, prompting the Australian to stick his middle finger up at the enthusiast in question.
The incident unfolded while former and driver Ricciardo was filming the 22nd season of . The 35-year-old entertained in more ways than one during his cameo alongside & Co, keeping those in-studio fans entertained along the way. Ricciardo – whose episode aired in February 2015 – joined the iconic list of celebrities to compete as a Star in a Reasonably Priced Car. And he smashed his attempt out of the park, rounding the Top Gear test track in a time of one minute and 42.2 seconds to set the show’s all-time record.
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That saw him place ahead of rivals like Hamilton, Mark Webber and following their own efforts in the Suzuki Liana. But that wasn’t the first time on the show an encounter with Hamilton caused uproar.
As Ricciardo fielded questions from the in-studio audience, one had the gall to ask: “What does the back of Lewis’ car look like?” The Aussie had made his debut for in 2014 and finished that season in third, while Hamilton won his second world title.
But he took the jibe in stride and fired straight back by flipping the fan in question off. And he even added a gentle rib of his own by asking: “Can you see that?”
The closest Ricciardo came to finishing a season in front of Hamilton came in 2016 when he again took third in the championship. That was the same season Hamilton settled for second behind team-mate Nico Rosberg, though it was a mighty gap of 124 points that separated silver and bronze.
Ricciardo flipped off the inquisitive fan in response (Image: BBC)
Still, retired Ricciardo will always have the bragging rights of knowing he holds the Top Gear title. And that honour is particularly precious given Hamilton had two attempts as a Star in the Reasonably Priced Car compared to Ricciardo’s one.
After more than a decade in F1, he appears to have left the sport for good following an unimpressive 2024 campaign with the RB team. Ricciardo finished 17th in the standings after accumulating only 12 points and was replaced by Liam Lawson towards the end of the year.
His career may have plenty of ‘what ifs’ attached to it, but the fan favourite will always have a cult hero status amongst F1 fans. As for Hamilton, he’s made his debut at the Australian Grand Prix, still going strong aged 40.