Ex-Formula 1 driver David Coulthard has warned Daniel Ricciardo that he needs to “rebuild” himself to get back into the championship as a driver, with the fan favourite having looked like a different person last season.
The last two years have been hugely challenging for the 33-year-old, who simply couldn’t perform consistently for McLaren.
His victory at the 2021 Italian Grand Prix somewhat hides a lot of what went wrong with the Australian’s relationship with McLaren, with the driver having often featured in Lando Norris’ shadow.
Ricciardo and Norris’ relationship was actually an incredible one, with Norris having recently spoken about how much the eight-time race winner did for him.
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His relationship with Norris, though, ultimately didn’t improve his on-track performances, with the Woking-based team having been beaten to fourth in the Constructors’ Championship by Alpine.
McLaren terminating Ricciardo’s 2023 contract was arguably the only option the duo had to move forward, with the driver having admitted himself that he requires some time away from the sport.
Whilst he won’t be racing in 2023, he will still be seen in the paddock occasionally, in his new role for the year as Red Bull’s development driver.
With this in mind, Ricciardo has returned to his F1 “family” to hopefully re-discover his immense talent, in a bid to find a full-time seat for 2024.
Coulthard has stressed the importance of Ricciardo getting back to his former self this year, with his F1 career likely over otherwise.
“Daniel, not being where we knew he could be – he just didn’t look like Daniel of old so this is about him trying to rebuild,” Coulthard told the BBC.
“He has a great legacy with Red Bull and he left to go off and try and make it big elsewhere, that didn’t work so he has come back to the family.
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“If he can get his mind back to what is was when he was having success, then Daniel has to have an opportunity to come back.
“If this opportunity doesn’t manifest itself then that’s probably his Grand Prix career wrapped up.”
As well as being Red Bull’s development driver, he will also fill Liam Lawson’s reserve driver role when the New Zealander is tied-up in Japan competing in Super Formula, meaning Ricciardo could potentially race in 2023 should Max Verstappen or Sergio Pérez be unable to.