Formula 1 2023: Daniel Ricciardo says he’s had no talks about replacing Sergio Perez as Red Bull driver
Speculation over Sergio Perez’s future at Red Bull intensified after last week’s Mexico Grand Prix, but Daniel Ricciardo insists he hasn’t been approached to replace him.
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Daniel Ricciardo insists he has not had any discussions with Red Bull about taking Sergio Perez’s seat next year as Max Verstappen labelled questions over who he would prefer as his teammate as “unfair”.
Speculation over Perez’s future at Red Bull intensified after last week’s Mexico Grand Prix when his struggles on track continued, while Ricciardo boosted his own stocks.
Perez crashed out on the opening lap of his home Grand Prix as Mercedes’ seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton reduced the gap to just 20 points behind the Mexican in the battle for second place in the F1 drivers’ championship.
The 33-year-old is contracted to Red Bull until the end of next season, but has now only had one podium in the last seven Grand Prix.
In a drive which drew praise from Red Bull boss Christian Horner, Ricciardo claimed AlphaTauri’s best result for the year when he finished seventh off the back off an impressive qualifying performance to put his car on the second row.
Asked if there had been any dialogue with Red Bull about taking Perez’s seat next year ahead of this weekend’s Brazilian Grand Prix, the Australian said all his contract discussions had been focused on AlphaTauri.
“I haven’t (had any dialogue about replacing Perez). Obviously all the stuff around my contract next year has been related to AlphaTauri,” Ricciardo said.
“So that’s honestly as far as that goes.
“For me personally, having a weekend like Mexico is just definitely good for the soul.
“And also for the team, you know. I haven’t been here long, but for them to be tenth in the constructors’ and to jump two places in the space of two weekends was huge.
“So that kind of creates a very happy atmosphere around everyone. Kind of happy doing that and try to just keep charging on where I am.”
Ricciardo’s strong showing in Mexico came in just his second Grand Prix back from a broken hand, which sidelined him for five races.
The eight-time Grand Prix winner was confirmed as part of AlphaTauri’s driver line-up for 2024 alongside Yuki Tsunoda in September after he was parachuted into the team mid-year to replace the dumped Nyck De Vries.
The spotlight on Perez has come as his teammate Verstappen continues to dominate in a season he has amassed 16 races to secure a third straight drivers’ championship.
When questioned about who he would prefer as a teammate for next year, Verstappen said he had a great relationship with both Ricciardo and Perez and it was “unfair” to as him to nominate one.
“I always had a great relationship with Daniel, when (we) were teammates, when of course we weren’t,” Verstappen said.
“But at the same time I also have a great relationship with Checo and I find it a bit unfair to now sit here and say who I would prefer as a teammate or whatever.
“They have been great teammates and it’s not up to me at the end of the day to make these kinds of decisions because I’m very focused on my own performance.
“If it’s Checo next year, then great. I have a great working relationship with him, but also personally, I think he’s a great guy.
“And if it’s Daniel, then also we will get along fine and we have a great time. But, yeah, F1 can be a tough sport and you’re asking these kinds of these questions, but maybe also nothing happens right? So, we’ll see.”
Ricciardo said it was not enough for him to have one strong weekend and he needed to back it up again in Sao Paulo.
“Obviously (in) this sport you’ve got to kind of keep backing it up,” Ricciardo said.
“It’s nice to have a good weekend, but to just have one, in my mind, it’s not enough.
“But, of course for me, to have a strong weekend from start to finish (in Mexico) I think spoke something. It was something that I have struggled with the last year or two – didn’t have many weekends like that.
“This year was just about me rebuilding myself again and just trying to find … that old form or that old me. So Mexico felt a lot like that.”
‘Devastating’: Under-fire Perez’s vow after Mexico nightmare
Daniel Ricciardo is backing his prospects of having another top-10 car in Brazil as Sergio Perez vows to hit back after his “devastating” Mexican Grand Prix as the noise over his Red Bull future intensifies.
The speculation surrounding Perez’s Red Bull future went up a gear after the under-fire Mexican driver crashed out at the first corner of his home Grand Prix last weekend.
Perez’s race-ending collision with Ferrari pole-sitter Charles Leclerc heaped further pressure on his bid to secure second position in the drivers’ championship behind his world champion teammate Max Verstappen as Mercedes star Lewis Hamilton cut the margin between them to just 20 points with just three races remaining in the season.
Meanwhile, Ricciardo, the driver waiting in the wings to slot back into a Red Bull drive, finished seventh following a stunning qualifying performance to put his AlphaTauri on the second row of the grid in just his second race back from a broken hand.
Ricciardo’s performance drew praise from Red Bull boss Christian Horner, who said the Australian’s form in Mexico had endorsed the team’s decision to bring him back.
A shattered Perez acknowledged the impact the result Mexico DNF had on him, but said he was focused on turning his fortunes around at Sao Paulo and securing second place in the championship.
“Mexico was devastating for me but in this sport these things happen, and you can’t afford to keep going over what could have been,” Perez said.
“I wanted to win my home race more than anything but that is gone now and my full focus is on finishing second in the championship.
“We need to have a great weekend in Brazil and I feel confident in our ability to get results right now.
“It felt like things were coming together last weekend with the direction we are taking. I am more comfortable in the car, the work the team and I have put in together is paying off in terms of set-up and performance.
“Brazil is a totally different challenge to Mexico but it’s always a fun track and we have two opportunities to score points this weekend, so while sprint weekends are a challenge on set up, we want to maximise this chance all we can.”
Ricciardo delivered AlphaTauri’s best result of the season in Mexico, which came after a tough return when he finished last among the finishers on track in Austin.
The eight-time Grand Prix winner was confident he could back-up his Mexico drive with another points haul in Brazil.
“Mexico was a great weekend from start to finish, and I was really happy,” Ricciardo said.
“We had a good car and made the most of it. I stayed there for a couple of days after the race before coming down to Sao Paulo.
“This is another sprint weekend after the one in Austin, and I’m excited about it as I feel we have much more confidence in the car and how to set it up.
“Obviously, with me having raced two weekends in a row since I came back, I’m looking forward to dealing with the sprint format at Interlagos.
“Having said that, it’s hard to know how well this track will suit our car. I guess I haven’t done enough races with it to know which types of tracks are best for us.
“In Mexico, we did better than expected, so that gives us confidence for Brazil. I’d hope we can have another Q3, top-10 car.”
Fellow Australian Oscar Piastri, who was eighth in Mexico, said he was looking forward to “more chances for points” at the Brazil sprint weekend.
“The last few races have been reassuring, especially considering where we were at the start of the season,” Piastri said.
“Mexico was slightly tougher for me with the damage, but I’ve debriefed with the team, and I’ll take the learnings into this weekend as we aim for more points.”
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Originally published as Formula 1 2023: Daniel Ricciardo says he’s had no talks about replacing Sergio Perez as Red Bull driver
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