How close was Ricciardo to joining McLaren?

Zak Brown believes that Daniel Ricciardo might have left Red Bull for McLaren if the Woking squad had delivered a better 2018 car. Ricciardo stunned Formula 1 on Friday, confirming a switch to Renault on a two-year deal after reportedly growing tired of Red Bull favouring Max Verstappen.

Ricciardo was reported to have received a $20million offer from McLaren ahead of the French Grand Prix in June, however the Australian had been widely expected to sign a new Red Bull deal over F1's summer shutdown.

Friday's bombshell has shaken up the 2019 driver market considerably, and Brown revealed that his talks had gone positively with Ricciardo - highlighting his newly apparent desire to leave Red Bull.

"We had a couple of meetings and we are big fans of Daniel," Brown told RACER. "I think he's a great guy, I think he's a great race car driver. How close we came to getting him, I think only Daniel knows the answer to that question.

"Had we been running more competitively I think that would have increased our odds.

"I think he had a strong desire to leave and I think it was probably pretty close between us and Renault, but ultimately Daniel would be best to tell you how close. But he was certainly someone that we rate very highly and think he's a great race car driver and a great guy."

The decision, of course, opens up a seat at Red Bull, who have won three grands prix in 2018, but will gamble on Honda power units in 2019 after growing tired of Renault's inability to match Mercedes and Ferrari.

Fernando Alonso has been tentatively linked as a possible target for the Milton Keynes team - who may be able to offer race-winning potential that has been missing since his return to McLaren.

However, with Pierre Gasly and rumoured McLaren target Carlos Sainz Jr the main considerations at Red Bull, Brown does not fear losing his prized possession to a rival team.

"I think it's thrown a spanner in the works for some other teams but we've got a plan which we are executing against which Ricciardo's move doesn't impact," Brown said.

"Red Bull is a great racing team but I think Fernando has got what he wants to do in the back of his mind. Never say never, but I don't think it changes anything in Fernando's world."