Ricciardo Was 'Pretty Much Done With Formula 1' When He Came To Red Bull

Monday, 11 December 2023 at 13:00

Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner shared his perspective on Daniel Ricciardo's progress throughout the 2023 season.

Daniel Ricciardo was left without a seat in Fomrula One after the 2022 season when McLaren ended the contract earlier with the Australian driver due to unsatisfying performances.

The Honey Badger did not want to take a seat in a team competing at the back of the grid like Haas, or Williams, so he decided to wait a season to see whether some other chances open up.

During this year, Ricciardo joined Red Bull in the position of third driver, which meant he would drive on the simulator, and maybe two or three practice sessions throughout the season.

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Red Bull Racing F1 team principal Christian Horner shared that Ricciardo was nothing as he remembered him from before when he joined Red Bull in 2023. He told Sky Sports:

“"When he came to us you could see he was pretty much done with Formula 1, and he wasn't enjoying it."”

However, Ricciardo managed to work his way up the driving simulator, and when he got his chance to get in the seat of Red Bull during the Pirelli tire test at Silverstone after the British Grand Prix, he made the most of it.

The 34-year-old lately said his first timed lap at the test was "on the money," only a few hundreds off Verstappen's pole position time. That made a great impression on the team principal and the rest of the management.

“"But slowly, that smile came back, that energy came back, and certainly, that test he did in Silverstone for us mid-season was truly, truly impressive, and the work behind the scenes on the simulator, so he deserved the chance in the AlphaTauri."”

Red Bull was so impressed with Ricciardo's performance at the test they removed Nyck De Vries from the AlphaTauri and replaced him with the Honey Badger for the rest of the season.

On the other hand, the rest of the season was not exactly smooth sailing for the 34-year-old, who suffered an injury during the Free Practice in Zandvoort and had to stay on the sidelines for five races while he recovered. Horner added:

“"He was unlucky then to break his hand at Zandvoort. But I thought he drove very well this year and, most importantly, he put some engineering direction of the team with the experience he had. I think that really benefitted the AlphaTauri team."”