How Ricciardo 'broke Vettel's spirit' in Malaysia

Daniel Ricciardo was hailed for a brilliant piece of driving that sunk Sebastian Vettel late in the Malaysian Grand Prix.

Ricciardo finished third behind Red Bull teammate Max Verstappen, the podium finish his eighth in a season highlighted by his victory in Azerbaijan.

Starting No.4 on the grid, Ricciardo held off Vettel late in the race to consolidate fourth position on the drivers' championship.

After a horror mishap in qualifying, Vettel started from the back of the grid, but made a furious run at the podium.

Vettel threw everything he had at the Aussie, but it wasn't enough as Ricciardo showed some brilliant defence to keep him at bay.

"You’ve broken Vettel’s spirit," Ricciardo's Red Bull team said over the radio.

"He’s having to look after his tyres now. Good job, mate."

Ricciardo opened up about the final stages after the race.

“Seb came really quick at the end and I thought he was going to be a handful,” Ricciardo said.

“But he only had one strong attack and then we were able to pull away.

"I guess it was pretty lonely, but it was hot and physical so it was nice to get a podium. Congrats to Max, he drove great all weekend and a good race for the team.”

Things went from bad to worse for Vettel after the race when he was involved in a bizarre crash with Lance Stroll on the cool-down lap.