Daniel Ricciardo reveals his ONE AlphaTauri demand ahead of F1 return

Daniel Ricciardo

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Ricciardo reveals his ONE AlphaTauri demand ahead of F1 return

Aussie driver gears up for F1 return after nearly eight months away from the sport

Shay Rogers

Thursday 20 July 2023 08:57 Updated: 00:03

Daniel Ricciardo has one wish for his new AlphaTauri car heading into the Hungarian Grand Prix, as prepares to return to the F1 grid following a near year-long hiatus.

The eight-time race winner left Formula 1 at the conclusion of the 2022 season to take time away from the sport following a challenging period with McLaren, in which he was largely outshone by Lando Norris.

However, after being loaned to AlphaTauri to race with the team for the foreseeable future, the Australian driver appears to have renewed optimism about his career, as he eyes a return to Red Bull for 2025.

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Ricciardo's one hope for AlphaTauri car

With two races before the summer break, Ricciardo has time to get back into the groove of things before he is likely to be critically assessed by those in the paddock.

Speaking in AlphaTauri’s Hungarian Grand Prixview, he covered various aspects of his return, as well as his hopes for the weekend.

He said: “I’m stoked to be back. As always with the Red Bull family, you have to be ready for a call and when it came I jumped at the opportunity. The transition to AlphaTauri has gone smoothly.

“The AlphaTauri car will be what it is. I’m going to drive it and work from there. I don’t want to have too many preconceived ideas about it. I think if it’s a car that feels balanced, that’s something I can work with.”

Yuki Tsunoda will have a new team-mate at the Hungarian Grand Prix

Long-term, it is no secret that he would love to return to the sharp end of the F1 grid, however that doesn’t mean that he isn’t going to work his socks off to help AlphaTauri progress up the rankings.

He said: “I’m looking forward to also developing the car and using my experience, and ultimately, I think, for Budapest, just go out and have fun, try and use more right foot than left and have a good time!”

While points may be out of reach for the team sitting bottom of the constructors' standings, there is still a lot of valuable information to be gathered this weekend, including an important comparison between Ricciardo and star performer Yuki Tsunoda.

Whoever comes out on top between the two for the rest of the season, could find themselves in prime position for a 2025 drive at Red Bull alongside Max Verstappen.