Merhi: Ricciardo 'perfect fit' for Ferrari

Jul.3 - Daniel Ricciardo should be the frontrunner to replace Kimi Raikkonen at Ferrari.

That is the view of Roberto Merhi, who chuckled to Spain's Marca sports newspaper that he wishes he was also in the running for a move to Maranello.

Actually, the reported frontrunner is Williams' Valtteri Bottas.

"Bottas is very good," Spanish rookie Merhi said, "but in the race sometimes he makes small mistakes.

"It does seem strange that he is beaten on many days by Felipe Massa," the Manor driver added, "but we are talking about a great driver, of course."

But Merhi said that if the choice was his, he would sign Australia's Ricciardo.

"I think he meets all the requirements. He has Italian ancestry, speaks a little of the language, has a very open character and with a competitive car gets good results, as happened last year with Red Bull," said Merhi.

"I think he would fit perfectly with Ferrari."

Merhi acknowledges, however, that Ricciardo would not be the first choice of his prospective 2016 teammate Sebastian Vettel.

"He (Ricciardo) beat him last year at Red Bull and so I don't think he would be his (Vettel's) favourite teammate, but I think it would be good for Ferrari overall," the 24-year-old Spaniard added.

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