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McLaren boss Zak Brown believes that with Daniel Ricciardo returning to Red Bull, it gives the Australian the best chance of returning to Formula 1 as a full-time driver.
Ricciardo parted ways with McLaren at the end of the 2022 season, despite having a contract until 2023 with the Woking team. The partnership ultimately failed due to the expectations in performances not being met.
The Australian was thoroughly beaten in both seasons by younger teammate Lando Norris. The 33-year-old did not feel comfortable in the MCL36, resulting in him not being able to lean on the car.
Lots of people have questioned Ricciardo’s move back to Red Bull after leaving the Austrian team in 2018. However, McLaren CEO Zak Brown believes that Red Bull can give the Australian the best chance to return to the grid.
Ricciardo can replicate what De Vries did
The American used the example of Nyck de Vries’ performance in Monza. The Dutch driver stepped in for Alex Albon, delivering an impressive ninth place finish. The performance in Monza landed the 27-year-old a seat at AlphaTauri for the 2023 season.
De Vries had a lot of experience in a Formula 1 car as a Mercedes reserve driver in the 2022 season. The Dutchman drove for: Williams, Mercedes, and Aston Martin. The 27-year-old also had a private test session with Alpine.
“Look at what happened with Nyck with one good session,” said Brown. “All of a sudden he became hot property.
“So, if one of those guys [at Red Bull] couldn’t race for some reason, and he [Ricciardo] hopped in and all of a sudden he took that car to where it is now, it can just turn on a dime.”
Is Red Bull reserve better than Haas full-time?
Brown was asked by Motrosport.com whether joining Red Bull as a reserve was a better option than going to Haas for a full-time seat. The American responded:
“It’s hard to tell. In one sense if you go to Haas and then you give it to [Kevin] Magnussen that’s one way to kind of get back on the radar.”
The McLaren boss then mentioned about the possibility of stepping in for either Verstappen or Perez. The American further emphasising the possibility of competing in a race if a driver gets COVID-19.
“The other is a [Red Bull] driver gets COVID, you’re in a race-winning car, you go out to win the race, and you’re back on the grid. So I think it’s hard to say which will create the best opportunity.”
Brown “surprised” no other team snapped Ricciardo up
The American admitted that he was shocked that Ricciardo wasn’t snapped up by another teams. It was made clear that the Australian was available in the summer when McLaren made the announcement.
“I’m surprised some of the other teams that looked for drivers didn’t select him,” he said. “But also, I think there were certain teams he wasn’t interested in driving for. So maybe they would have selected him.
“But he clearly wants to stay in the game. He won Monza last year; eight races is a lot of races to win. So it’s in there, we just weren’t able to unlock it. And hopefully in another environment, something will unlock it, because I think we’d like to see Daniel on the grid.”
Ricciardo has proven that, with the right car, the Australian can be one of the best on the grid. The 33-year-old’s driving style suited the Red Bull car’s philosophy to a tee. The Red Bull reserve driver won seven times with the Austrian team.
Ricciardo also performed excellently at Renault, finishing fifth in the 2020 drivers’ championship. Furthermore. the Australian still managed to win a race with McLaren. The former McLaren driver lead a McLaren one-two ahead of Lando Norris at the 2021 Italian Grand Prix in Monza.
Do you think Daniel Ricciardo made the right choice in joining Red Bull again – this time as a reserve driver?
Feature Image Credit: @redbullracing on Twitter
