Horner questions why Ricciardo would move to McLaren

Earlier this week it was reported that McLaren have offered a mega-money contract to Daniel Ricciardo to jump ship from Red Bull when his current deal expires at the end of the current season, but Christian Horner has questioned why he would move to a less competitive team.

Following the reports, Ricciardo admitted that he would not rule out a move to a currently less competitive team like McLaren or Renault, but his team boss Horner has now provided his opinion, reiterating again he wants the Australian to stay put.

"The situation with Daniel is there's an intent on both sides to move forwards," Horner assured.

"The first thing was to close the situation with the engine. That's now done, Daniel understands the engineering rationale behind that.

"Let's not forget he's been in a car that the last couple of grands prix [Monaco and Canada] has been lapping the cars to our left. It would be a fairly bold decision to step out of a car he's won two grands prix in this year and is a championship contender.

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"I would be surprised if he was to leave the team because it's a good fit between himself and Red Bull but it's Formula One."

McLaren boss Eric Boullier has also responded to the connection with Ricciardo, and admitted he is a fan of the driver who has won two GP races this campaign.

"We love Daniel, I've known him many, many years," said Boullier. "He's doing a good job with Red Bull.

"As long as a driver of that calibre is on the market you look to see if there's a discussion possible. At this time of the year it's still too early to speak about that. Just normal, gentle discussions."