Daniel Ricciardo opens up on 'family' return

Daniel Ricciardo wearing headphones at the 2023 Abu Dhabi GP — Photo: © IMAGO

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Ricciardo opens up on 'family' return

The Australian made his mark in 2023

By Sam Cook.

Monday 5 February 2024 02:57

Daniel Ricciardo has revealed that he didn't think his return to what he calls the 'Red Bull family' would come quite as soon as it did.

The Australian was called up into the AlphaTauri (now Visa Cash App RB) team midway through the 2023 season due to a run of poor performances from Dutch rookie Nyck de Vries.

It meant a return to a full-time racing seat for Ricciardo, who had previously been released from his contract early by the McLaren team at the end of 2022.

Ricciardo's return showed a lot of promise in the latter stages of 2023 - despite being hampered by an injury - and this led to rumours that he could make the step-up into the Red Bull hot seat and replace the struggling Sergio Perez.

Nonetheless, the so-called honey badger is focused on the job in hand at VCARB in the upcoming 2024 season, where he is expected to be involved in a hugely important team-mate battle with Yuki Tsunoda.

Ricciardo's Red Bull return

Now, Ricciardo has revealed in a LinkedIn post his thoughts while waiting on the sidelines during the early stages of 2023.

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“A part of me knows, I like being back in the Red Bull Family, I know they can throw these curveballs, if you will, at you, so I try to remind myself to stay on my toes and be ready, just in case," the Australian commented.

“But yeah, I didn’t think it was going to come maybe that soon. In the end, this is where I want to be, I want to be back on the grid, and I was so happy being back in the Red Bull family that it was an opportunity that I didn’t want to miss.

Red Bull Daniel Ricciardo