“Before you criticise a man, walk a mile in his shoes. That way, when you do criticise him, you'll be a mile away and have his shoes.” Thus said the masterful hero of comedy Steve Martin. It’s a take, of course, on the old adage that one must have experience of another’s lot in life before passing judgement. Elvis and Harry Belafonte sang about it. So there must be some truth to it. I tried it once. Not out of some great quest for a deeper truth, you understand. I just walked a fair distance in another man’s shoes. My family were going on an afternoon walk at my mother’s house and I didn’t have the correct footwear. So I borrowed my brother-in-law’s hiking boots. Which ultimately brought me to my belief that the phrase and the notion upon which it is predicated, are utter hogwash. Don’t ever walk a mile (or five) in another man’s boots. You’ll develop massive blisters, get ridiculously grumpy and become a pain in everyone’s arse. The notion’s got nothing to do with being critical of someone else, mind you. It’s just some footwear advice, really. Which, naturally, brings me to Formula 1. I’ve been thinking about some of the drivers we’d probably have expected a bit more from in the early races of the season. Those who have, arguably, disappointed. Two names spring immediately to mind. They are, of course, Daniel Ricciardo and Pierre Gasly. Now both of these guys are hugely talented, well respected, and highly-regarded racers. They haven’t simply forgotten how to drive over the winter. But both have experienced huge shifts since Abu Dhabi and find themselves at teams and in cars built without them in mind.

In talking to both of them over both testing and the last two race weekends, there has been a similarity in their demeanour and reaction to the task that lies ahead of them. Neither is finding life in any way easy at the moment. The cars at their disposal do not suit their individual driving style. And in an environment where they are still trying to adapt and integrate themselves, it will take time for them to gel and to elicit the change that they wish to see that will allow them to compete in a package over which they had no input, and yet from which they must extract the maximum. To me, that’s the very definition of walking a mile in another man’s boots. The poor fit will almost inevitably lead to pain. “We’re there or thereabouts,” Ricciardo told me on Saturday in Bahrain. “I feel I’m open-minded to try and make the most out of this car, just adapt a few things. I don’t want to stay I’m stuck in my old ways but the car needs to be tamed differently [to the Red Bull]. “I’m not 100% there yet, but also you’re never going to be 100% there until the car is 100% there as well. I knew it would be a process. I feel like I’m learning each time and so long as I keep learning and giving the team the confidence that I’m getting up to speed then that’s progress.” You could see it too. The moment when he and team mate Nico Hulkenberg collided in the race came almost entirely down to Ricciardo’s reduced comfort in his car, and a lack of the confidence under braking which had hallmarked his Red Bull career.