Ricciardo Claims He Has Nothing To Prove Amid Doubts From F1 World Champion

Tuesday, 19 March 2024 at 00:00

Daniel Ricciardo responded to Alan Jones's suggestion that "we have seen the best days" of him by asserting he has "nothing to prove" ahead of the 2024 Australian Grand Prix.

Coming into the third race of the season, Danial Ricciardo is losing head-to-head with his teammate Yuki Tsunoda 0:2 in qualifying sessions and is in a draw in terms of race performance—1:1.

While it has been only two races, the expectations from the Honey Badger are huge because he was proposed as the favorite for the second seat in Red Bull for the 2025 season.

The Australian hasn't been able to deliver during the season's first two race weekends, and the criticism is slowly growing. 1980 F1 World Champion Alan Jones told the Herald Sun about the Australian driver:

"I would love to see Daniel go extremely well in Melbourne, I would like to see Daniel go extremely well period."

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"But I just think that his luck is going to have to change or he is going to have to lift his game if he has got any chance of getting back in that Red Bull team or getting back into a more competitive car."

On the one hand, RB hasn't brought as fast a car as many fans expected. On the other hand, many agree that a driver who wants to drive for Red Bull should clearly outperform his teammate no matter the car. Jones added:

"He is treading water. He really needs to have some very good results and put up a good show, he can't be dwelling down where he is."

"I hate to say it, but I think we have seen the best days [from Ricciardo]. He has had his bum in a few decent cars, irrespective of what people say."

The third race of the season takes place in Ricciardo's home country, Austria, so if he is to deliver some great results throughout the season, there is no better time for him than this week. Speaking to 10 News First ahead at the beginning of the race week, he said:

"It's been a bit of a slower start to the year, but there have only been two races. So, hopefully, this season starts now on the right foot in Melbourne, and that will be the first one to get going."

Approached with a quote from Alan Jones that maybe he passed his best and asked whether he has something to prove in the upcoming races, Ricciardo responded: "Not at all, see ya."