Daniel Ricciardo’s Red Bull hopes could be dashed by ‘dream team‘

Daniel Ricciardo’s hopes of winning a permanent spot at Red Bull might be dashed already with plans for a “dream team” reportedly emerging.

NORTHAMPTON, ENGLAND - JULY 11: Daniel Ricciardo of Australia and Oracle Red Bull Racing walks in the garage during Formula 1 testing at Silverstone Circuit on July 11, 2023 in Northampton, England. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)

Daniel Ricciardo’s dream return to the Formula 1 grid could be scuppered almost as quickly as it started, with reports emerging overnight of a proposed Red Bull “dream team” to succeed the tempestuous Verstappen-Perez partnership.

Amid confirmation that Ricciardo’s sensational return to the Formula 1 grid on Wednesday morning, with the 34-year-old making an immediate move to AlphaTauri, it became clear that Ricciardo was in line to replace Sergio Perez should he perform in the junior team over the course of the rest of the season.

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Just six months after his bombshell sacking at the hands of McLaren, Ricciardo will be back in action with the same team he began his career with in 2012, and if recent reports about his pace are to be believed, set to make the same progression he did in 2014 to the senior team.

This fairytale story could be ruined, however, with Italian outlet Formu1a.uno reporting that Red Bull are looking to form a “dream team” for their line-up heading into the 2025 season, with both McLaren’s Lando Norris and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc both raised as options.

The report states that it is in line with a desire from Liberty Media (the owners of the sport) to convince the top teams to move away from designated second drivers in favour of stacked driver line-ups in order to improve the spectacle.

According to the report, Red Bull had reached out to Leclerc as early as May.

Ricciardo’s famous Colgate smile might be short lived. (Photo by Gongora/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

The rumours took on extra weight amid remarks from Red Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko after the British Grand Prix.

Marko was full of praise for Norris after his strong showing at Silverstone, qualifying and finishing in a surprise second.

“He [Norris] is under contract with McLaren until 2025, but he is the strongest of the young drivers,” Marko said.

“His youthful nature would also suit him better at Red Bull, and it‘s no secret that Max and he are good friends.”

Marko said the team “still maintain contact” with Norris, as do all teams and drivers over the course of a season and particularly during the upcoming contracting “silly season”.

Nonetheless, Ricciardo’s move piles pressure on Perez to find the pace that saw him win two of the opening four races of the season.

Since then he has endured a series of qualifying disasters, despite driving the fastest car on the grid.

Red Bull boss Christian Horner confirmed that when sharing his excitement about Ricciardo’s return to the grid.

“It was great to see Daniel hasn’t lost any form while away from racing and that the strides he has been making in his SIM sessions translate on track,” Horner said.

“His times during the tyre test were extremely competitive. It was a very impressive drive and we are excited to see what the rest of the season brings for Daniel on loan at Scuderia AlphaTauri.”

McLaren’s Lando Norris could be the man to replace Ricciardo. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)

Scuderia AlphaTauri Team Principal Franz Tost said: “I’m very pleased to welcome Daniel back into the team.

“There’s no doubt about his driving skills, and he already knows many of us, so his integration will be easy and straight forward. The team will also profit a lot from his experience, as he is an eight-time Formula 1 Grand Prix winner.

“I would like to thank Nyck (De Vries, who Ricciardo replaces) for his valuable contribution during his time with Scuderia AlphaTauri and I wish him all the best for the future.”

After the British GP, Ricciardo got his first chance to show that he still has what it takes when he drove the RB19 in a tyre test around the Silverstone track.

It marked the first time Ricciardo was in a Red Bull on track since he rejoined the team after his contract was torn up by McLaren.

While it was listed as being a tyre test, the three day drive was enough for Ricciardo to blow the Red Bull family away.

Marko told Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf: “Ricciardo’s lap times were competitive during the tyre test, on three different tyre sets.

“If Ricciardo hadn’t had the speed, we would have needed to consider something else.

“But AlphaTauri is not in a good position right now and is last in the constructors’ standings, so we had to do something to change that. That often happens after a driver change and Ricciardo brings new energy to the team.”