2023-07-16 10:00:17
Appointed to replace Nyck de Vries at AlphaTauri, Daniel Ricciardo assured that he was not afraid of anything regarding the challenge of a return to Formula 1 mid-season.
After only ten races in the 2023 season, Nyck de Vries was thanked by Red Bull which replaced Dutch with Daniel Ricciardo chez AlphaTauri. After two complicated seasons at McLaren and six months without competition as third driver in Milton Keynes, expectations around the Australian, author of eight successes in the queen discipline, are quite limited.
Asked about the subject by F1, Ricciardo is in any case eager to take up this challenge which could give a second wind to his career, with some believing that it could be a step towards a return to Red Bull Racing. : “I’m very excited; it’s a challenge for me to arrive and try to be competitive.”
“But also, I feel like I’ve been through a lot in the last few years and I’m not really scared of everything that’s going to come my way. I’m aware that the car will have its limits. It doesn’t maybe doesn’t have as much grip as the Red Bull I rode a few days ago, but if it feels relatively balanced, I can live with that.”
Daniel Ricciardo driving the Red Bull RB19 during a test at Silverstone.
“They expect results, performance, but I think until I’m in the car it’s hard to define what it will be. A P8? A P14? I don’t think there’s any pressure before the summer break. But I don’t expect a sluggish start either. I want to get off to a flying start and try to use what I’ve learned during this rest period to put it to good use.”
This ‘period of rest’ came to an end at the right time according to Ricciardo, Helmut Marko’s call coming when his desire to return to competition was strong: “I didn’t really need to think about it. Back in this family [Red Bull]I feel like I’m reliving it all and these are calls I used to get.”
“So there was no doubt that I was going to say yes. It was just a matter of reality: ‘OK, it’s going to happen very soon’. I’ve been part of the Red Bull family for so long. And I know these things can happen. So even though I was sure I was going to take some time off this year, deep down I knew I might get a call.”
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