Daniel Ricciardo has spent much of the season fighting for his seat at RB. Reserve driver Liam Lawson has been lurking in the background, pushing for a drive.
There was talk that Ricciardo could lose his drive as early as the Miami Grand Prix, which was just the sixth round of the season. He’d started the year as a contender to replace Sergio Perez at Red Bull but fallen a long way short of expectations.
Helmut Marko has indicated that the Lawson camp may have been peddling ‘nonsense’ rumours about a change. But the Red Bull executive director fuelled them himself ahead of the Austrian GP.
Marko said that the team’s shareholders were pushing for a young driver to occupy the seat alongside Yuki Tsunoda. As such, the change would need to happen ‘soon’.
RB have already activated the option to extend Tsunoda’s contract for another year. He leads Ricciardo 8-3 in qualifying this year and has outscored him by 19 points to 11.
Red Bull gave the Australian a lifeline midway through 2023 after axing Nyck de Vries. He won seven races with the team between 2014 and 2018, but he’s just turned 35 and seems to have little upward mobility at this stage of his career.
RB decide to give Daniel Ricciardo time after Liam Lawson ‘chatter’
F1 journalist Lawrence Barretto says that, amid all the ‘chatter’ about Ricciardo losing his seat to Lawson mid-season, he’s not ‘under threat’. Instead, the team will give him time to show that he can deliver on a consistent basis.
Barretto’s F1TV colleague Will Buxton had indicated that he could be out before the British GP. But there doesn’t seem to be any immediate danger.
The former McLaren driver has shown some signs of improvement in recent races. He finished eighth in Canada – his best Grand Prix result of the season – after securing RB’s highest grid slot of 2024 (P5).
He also outraced Tsunoda in Barcelona, albeit on a desperately disappointing weekend for the team as a whole, before bringing home points in Austria. Ricciardo crossed the line ninth, having started three spots ahead of his teammate in 11th.
Ricciardo in talks with another team over 2025 seat
Previous reports have suggested that Ricciardo has the backing of Red Bull team principal Christian Horner. So long as he retains it, he should be able to ward off the concerns of Marko.
But still, he’d be wise to line up some contingency plans in case the team do decide to call up Lawson for 2025. They’re under pressure to do so in the knowledge that he can leave under a clause in his contract.
It’s difficult to know where Ricciardo stands in the market right now. He’s achieved a great deal in F1 – eight wins, three poles and 32 podiums – but has been battling to prove he deserves to be on the grid for a number of years.
Audi have no interest in signing the 250-race veteran to partner Nico Hulkenberg. But he is apparently holding talks with Williams, who have a vacancy alongside Alex Albon.
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