Former World Champion Damon Hill quashes Daniel Ricciardo to AlphaTauri rumour

An F1 legend has rubbished a rumour linking Daniel Ricciardo to a shock return to the grid, saying the Aussie has nothing to gain from the switch.

Former Formula 1 World Champion Damon Hill has quashed rumours that linked Daniel Ricciardo to Nyck De Vries’ precarious AlphaTauri seat.

Hill, speaking to the Sky Sports F1 podcast, said Ricciardo wouldn’t seek a midfield role if he were to return to driving full-time.

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“Well, they had a seat fit at AlphaTauri, and so that’s set chins wagging,” Hill said.

“And realistically, what has Daniel Ricciardo got to gain by going up against either Nyck or Yuki Tsunoda in an AlphaTauri?

“He’s been there, he’s done that, he’s not after that. There’s nothing more to this than if there is a need for a reserve driver situation then he might jump in.

“But I can’t see him (doing it). He’s already said that he’s not interested in doing a middling team, he only wants to be in a car that can win.”

Hill won the 1996 World Championship with Williams. Photo: Supplied

Ricciardo was in Italy over the Miami GP weekend, but it was for the wedding of friend Scotty James. Pictured with partner Heidi Berger. Photo: Instagram

Ricciardo himself has shot down suggestions of returning with a backmarker team, telling Top Gear he was past driving for stragglers, despite the lack of available seats on the 2024 grid.

“I knew this was going to be a risk obviously removing myself from a seat,” Ricciardo said.

“But I think it’s clear what I don’t want. I don’t want (just) any seat next year … I don’t want to just start from zero, and kind of build my career from scratch.”

Rumours flew around the F1 world after it emerged that Ricciardo, as a Red Bull reserve driver, had a seat fitting with AlphaTauri the week of the Miami Grand Prix.

AlphaTauri, previously known as Toro Rosso, has historically been used as a junior feeder for the Constructors’ Champions, with four-time champion Sebastian Vettel and current double World Champion Max Verstappen both getting their full-time starts with the team.

Ricciardo himself also drove for Toro Rosso in 2012 and 2013 before being promoted to the Red Bull Racing outfit in 2014.

De Vries is at risk of losing his spot if he doesn’t shape up. (Photo by Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images)

Asked about the under-fire De Vries, Hill said the Dutchman will need more time to adjust to the sport, and that his unexpected 9th on Grand Prix debut as a fill-in driver was as the result of low expectations.

“He’s had a lot to deal with,” Hill said.

“It’s quite different to being asked to jump in a car at Monza at very short notice where nobody’s expecting anything and you’re free to cope with whatever you got with.

“And he did a fantastic job and that’s why he got his second chance in F1, or first chance in F1.

“I think some of the races, he’s been to some of the circuits we’ve been to but not all of them – he hadn’t been to Miami and it was tricky conditions.

“It’s very competitive now. The spread is tiny. In qualifying, he’s under a lot of pressure, and when I started in F1, I looked a bit shaky as well when I first got my chance all of us.

“It just doesn’t stop, give you a chance to catch your breath.

“So that said, the ones who can cope with that and arrive in the sport and suddenly do something mind-blowing, like Max Verstappen, like the Michael Schumachers and the Lewis’s – they somehow stand out.

“And perhaps the fact that Nyck is struggling a bit is normal. It doesn’t mean he won’t be a very good racing driver, but he might not be in the Ayrton Senna category.”

Hill’s remarks about De Vries come amid reports he may lose his seat given his poor performances so far this year.