DANIEL Ricciardo answers the phone.

"G'Day mate," he says in an unmistakable Australian accent even though he has spent five years abroad.

He is sitting in a transit lounge at an airport in Kuala Lumpur, ready to board a plane to Melbourne for what will be the busiest week of his life.

Ricciardo, Australia's other Formula One driver besides Mark Webber, is jet-lagged. He has spent the past month in Spain, getting his Toro Rosso machine race fit for the season-opening Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park this Sunday.

After a brief trip to his house in Milton Keynes, north of London, he is waiting for a 14-hour flight to his real home.

In Europe, the 23-year-old is big news. He is the Perth wonder boy tipped to take over from Webber next year and join Sebastian Vettel in a potentially championship-winning seat at Red Bull.

He has been fronted by countless F1-obsessed journalists over the past month, all asking him the usual questions. Will you be driving for Red Bull next year? Will you beat teammate Eric Vergne? Can you win races? Is Mark Webber your mate?

So what is it like dealing with the spotlight that comes from being an F1 star?

His answers give a rare insight into the sometimes lonely life of a world rivalled only by rock stars.

Forget high-profile girlfriends, lucrative sponsorship deals, and entry to VIP rooms at already exclusive clubs, the kid that moved to Italy on his own to chase an F1 dream when he was 17 barely has time for a friend.

"You try to make friends along the way but it is not easy," Ricciardo said.

"The friends you tend to make are drivers because you spend most of your time at a track. To be honest, the bloke I spend most of my time with is my trainer, Stuart Smith. He is an Aussie from Brisbane and he is with me all the time. He is with me at every event and when I go home we train together.

"I also hang out a bit with a Kiwi driver I raced with in other categories before. He lives five minutes down the road and we are pretty close. We train and hang out.

"But in this business you are one out a lot of the time. It is hard to make friends because of all the travelling we do and how busy we are. I am never in one place at one time and it is impossible to build a network of friends.

"I think Mark (Webber) is my best mate when it comes to drivers. I don't really dislike any of the drivers, but I don't get along with all of them either.

"There are a couple that I may have only said one word to in the last 12 months. I think that is just how it is. We don't go out of our way to hang out. Maybe some do but, to be honest, I am not that interested."

Ricciardo spends an average of just 10 days a month at his home in Milton Keynes. He often checks the weather reports in Australia, longing for the sun and the mates he left behind when he moved into a one-bedroom flat with nothing but a 34cm television and a dream. He spends $400 a month on phone calls to his home.

"It would be a lot more if it wasn't for WhatsApp and Skype," he says.

"That is the hardest thing, missing my family and mates. I don't get to see them much, but this week a few of them are coming from Perth.

media_camera Road warrior: Daniel Ricciardo, pictured with Mark Webber before last year's Australian Grand Prix, spends an average of just 10 days a month at his home in Milton Keynes, England. Picture: Michael Dodge

"But honestly, my only chance to see them will be on Sunday night when it is all over. I can't wait to catch up, because I don't know when I will see them again."

Launched into a shock F1 debut with HRT at Silverstone in 2011 after being loaned out from Red Bull Racing where he was a test driver, Ricciardo has become the most talked about young driver in the sport.

In 2010, he carved 1.5sec off Sebastian Vettel's pole position time in Abu Dhabi. Same car. Same track.

He also privately set records in simulators that surpass Vettel. The Aussie kid is a real talent.

Last year, he was promoted to Toro Rosso, the Red Bull sister team. He was paired with the other hot young driver in the sport, Frenchman Eric Vergne, in what was considered a trial for Webber's seat.

Although he finished behind Vergne on race points, Ricciardo scored a slight win, his one-lap speed undeniably quicker.

Ricciardo is looking to make it a KO victory over his teammate this year.

"I think the only disappointment last year was to be behind on points," Ricciardo said.

"Looking at the whole picture, I felt I did a consistently better job. I want to increase that this year. Let's say if I statistically won by a nose last year, I won't settle for that this year. I really want to blow it apart and make a stand.''

media_camera Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo testing for Scuderia Toro Rosso at the Circuit de Catalunya on March 1, 2013

Those close to Ricciardo say he has never changed as a bloke, but they have all witnessed a dramatic change in his desire and attitude.

He once thought of Vettel as Superman and was in awe of the likes of Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso, but he now sees them all as beatable.

"If I have the package to do it, I can really win races,'' he said.

"Some people say this isn't a junior category anymore, but all the guys I am up against came from that category, too.

"I now believe 100 per cent in my ability. I am not trying to be arrogant, but I believe in myself. I don't really look up to these guys anymore like they are superheroes. I put them down to the human level like everyone else. I am not intimidated by anyone.

"For Melbourne, I would love to be on the podium. I have the confidence and maturity to believe in myself. But I think a good start would be to be in the points. That would be a good result for the team.

"A top 10 for us is like a podium for Red Bull, and that is my aim. But, really, who knows? I will aim high."

And don't doubt this superstar in the making. All he does is eat, train and drive. He has sacrificed so much to get where he is.

While grateful for what he has, he is utterly determined to get even more.

Originally published as Driven Aussie won't be intimidated