Ricciardo senses ‘better opportunities’ in 2024 as star eyes two seats

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Daniel Ricciardo has finally opened up on his plans for 2023 after admitting that joining an F1 team for next season is no longer a realistic option. The McLaren driver will leave the team at the end of the 2022 season after being replaced by Oscar Piastri and the Australian’s struggle to find a team that matches his ambitions means he is more likely to return to the grid in 2024.

The 33-year-old is ready to turn his back on securing a seat for the 2023 season despite holding talks with Haas over potentially replacing Mick Schumacher. It was understood Ricciardo was in the frame to make a sensational return to Renault, now branded as Alpine, when Fernando Alonso’s departure set off a chain of events in the driver market.

But the highly-anticipated announcement that Pierre Gasly would be forming an all-French lineup with Esteban Ocon dashed Ricciardo’s hopes of going back to race with the Enstone team. Nyck de Vries has also taken up one of the three vacant seats for next year by signing up with Red Bull to drive for AlphaTauri, where Ricciardo began his career.

And with options wearing thin, it has forced Ricciardo to accept he may need to take a year out to fully explore his options.

“Yeah, to be honest, the Gasly news I was aware of, I knew they were talking for a while and I knew though they were very interested in Pierre,” Ricciardo told reporters at the Japanese Grand Prix.

“Let’s say I was prepared for that and no surprise so we were trying to, let’s say navigate, our way around that and figure out what was next.

“But I think the reality is now I won’t be on the grid in 2023, I think it’s now just trying to set up for ’24. I think that there could be some better opportunities then so that’s really what all this confirms and now where the sights are set.”

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Ricciardo has been heavily linked with succeeding De Vries by taking the reserve role at Mercedes, with a view of eventually replacing Lewis Hamilton. And by stating that “certainly the plan is still to be involved in F1”, he has done little to quash speculation.

However, the seven-time world champion’s desire to stay in the sport for a prolonged period could force Ricciardo to alter those plans. In any case, he will be taking a brief period away from the sport.

Ricciardo said: “It’s kind of like just hitting pause for a little bit, as I see it and let’s say as far as my F1 career goes the full intention is for ’24.”

But it remains possible that he could be targeting a role as Charles Leclerc’s team-mate in 2024. Carlos Sainz is under contract until the end of that season and looks likely to gain some sort of extension in the future after a decent showing since joining the Scuderia.

Ricciardo has been on the Prancing Horse’s radar before, though, and any drop in performance from Sainz could put his future under question. The Spaniard has been forced to accept his role as deputy to Charles Leclerc this season and equally may not appreciate playing the role of No 2 for much longer.

That may not be a problem for Ricciardo, who would be 35 in two years’ time and surely just happy to be part of Ferrari after missing out on a move in 2018 and 2020. But for now, Mercedes looks likely the more obvious destination for the Honey Badger.

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