Six million-dollar detail shows Daniel Ricciardo’s real place in team’s pecking order

McLaren rising star Lando Norris has signed a monster, multi-year contract extension to remain as Daniel Ricciardo’s teammate until at least the end of the 2023 Formula 1 season.

The surprise contract extension announced just days out from the Monaco Grand Prix came from out of nowhere on Wednesday night after the British rising star was reported to already be under contract through to the end of the 2022 Formula 1 season.

The team announced the 21-year-old signed a multi-year extension, but has not clarified the length of the new deal — or any clauses contained in the fine print.

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Reports emerged in the aftermath of the announcement that Norris’ new deal is a significant pay rise worth around $11 million (£6m) per-year, as first reported by The Sun.

The former junior McLaren development driver has been in a red hot battle with Ricciardo since the Aussie’s arrival from Renault — making them one of the most intriguing teammate battles on the grid this year.

Ricciardo’s seniority and proven results were expected to see the former Red Bull driver emerge as the No. 1 driver in the McLaren garage, but the team has not been showing any favouritism in the battle between the pair.

Daniel Ricciardo and Lando Norris. Photo: @mclaren.Source:Instagram

The fine print on Norris’ contract does however, show Ricciardo is the clear top dog in the McLaren garage as the highest paid driver in the team.

It was reported in May, 2020, Ricciardo was taking a huge pay cut to join McLaren on a deal reported to have been worth $17 million per-year, as valued by exchange rates at the time. The team has since confirmed Ricciardo is on a standard three-year contract that locks him in until the end of 2023.

It means Ricciardo has a $6 million advantage over Norris despite the drivers proving hard to separate in McLaren’s strong start to 2021.

The Norris contract announcement in part explains why the team used Norris’ No. 4 MCL35 when showing off the one-off livery the team will run with this weekend.

There was speculation following the promotional shoot that Norris was emerging as the face of the team.

Norris leads Ricciardo in the championship, having finished ahead of the Aussie in the first three races of the year. However, the Perth product has shown he is up for the fight, having out-performed Norris in qualifying in three of the four races this year.

Ricciardo also produced his most complete weekend this year when he finished sixth at the Spanish Grand Prix earlier this month — besting Norris for the first time.

Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo are now the best of frenemies.Source:AFP

There are plenty of reasons for McLaren to be thrilled with the Ricciardo-Norris combination.

“I’m delighted with the extension of our agreement with Lando for 2022 and beyond.,” McLaren CEO Zak Brown said in a statement.

“He’s been instrumental in our return of form here at McLaren and we’re proud of the growth he’s shown since he first started with us back in 2017. Lando is one of the brightest talents on the Formula 1 grid and we look forward to seeing him continue to go from strength-to-strength both on and off track.”

Norris told his fans the news on Twitter: “So excited to tell you that I’m staying with McLaren.

“My goal is to win races and world championships and over the last three years. McLaren have shown me that they’re able to build a car for me to do that in. Let’s continue what we started.”

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