Daniel Ricciardo F1 fans gleeful after Max Verstappen announcement

max verstappen, daniel ricciardo, red bull, graphic — Photo: © IMAGO

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Daniel Ricciardo fans gleeful after Max Verstappen announcement

How Max Verstappen saved F1 fans some cash

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Thursday 18 December 2025 21:55

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Max Verstappen has changed his F1 driver number and it's great news for some fans of the sport.

Let's pretend for a second that Max Verstappen is a Robin Hood-esque figure, crusading against the unjust prices set by the rich and giving the common populace a helping hand (at least in purchasing F1 merchandise).

Now, the champion had the chance to be incredibly greedy when Lando Norris won the F1 title and pinched his number 1. He could have – say – picked an obscure new driver number, one that hasn't seen the light of day in Formula 1 for years.

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Verstappen previously contemplated the idea of using the driver number '69', but was laughed at by his missus (thank you Kelly Piquet for preventing this) and has subsequently abandoned the idea.

Instead he has opted for a driver number all too familiar, one that belonged to former Red Bull team-mate Daniel Ricciardo - the number 3!

Ricciardo and Verstappen fans rejoice

With the Aussie only receiving the chop last year, there was a huge question mark over whether Verstappen would be allowed to race with the number. But, the champion prevailed, and what may seem like a simple decision to some, was (probably not) an effort to help a very specific sect of fans.

You see there is already a hoard of Red Bull merchandise – caps, t-shirts, umbrellas and such like – displaying the number three. So, if you were one of those fans celebrating Ricciardo's 2018 Monaco Grand Prix win and decided to treat yourself to a lovely bit of merchandise, brush off the cobwebs, tell the moths to f*** off and get your caps out!

One user on X showed off their Ricciardo cap from back in't day, and wrote: "Being a Daniel and Max fan is great because now I don't even have to buy new merch for 2026."

In the comments section, other fans did not disappoint with one writing: "People are gonna ask me if Max drove for McLaren."

Well, if he had, he would have won the title long before Abu Dhabi. Aye Max?

F1 Red Bull Max Verstappen Daniel Ricciardo