McLaren driver and star of Netflix’s ‘Drive to Survive’ Daniel Ricciardo will be without a race seat in 2023, however, he says that he only needs to look around him to reassure himself that he will be back in the future.
The current F1 grid has a variety of drivers older than Ricciardo that still find themselves successful, with Lewis Hamilton 37, Sebastian Vettel 35, and most notably Fernando Alonso still going at 41.
These drivers give Ricciardo the confidence to take a year out of the sport and come back stronger, rather than grasping at the first opportunity that comes his way.
“When my team were trying to put together a plan that I believe in, that is going to set me up for success in the long term – I know I’m 33 but I look at Alonso, I look at Lewis and if I want to be here, and I still know I have it in my heart, then I know I can,” he said.
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“It’s really not now just about looking at next year and jumping in the first available seat.
“I want to say it’s not new but I’m trying to look a little bit beyond that and back myself to be winning races again.”
The Australian has been eclipsed by the performances of his teammate Lando Norris since signing for McLaren and will be replaced by Oscar Piastri for 2023, however he sees no benefit to taking one of the vacant seats.
“I was aware that there is a seat at Hass potentially available and a seat at Williams potentially available,” he said when asked about his options for 2023.
Haas team boss Guenther Steiner revealed that he did message Ricciardo about the Haas seat, however, the 33-year-old declined to express any interest in going down that avenue.
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“I think you need to ask Danny that one, not me, about why he doesn’t want to race,” said Steiner when quizzed about the Ricciardo rejection.
“I don’t know if it’s something against Haas or he has just decided to do something different for a year. I cannot guess what he wants to do. I have no idea what to answer you.”
It is understood that Ricciardo is in talks with former employer Red Bull over taking a reserve driver role for the team next season, with the aim of returning to the grid in 2023, racing for a top team.