Daniel Ricciardo Admits $18,000,000 Sabbatical Ended Sooner Than He Expected

In a positive development for Daniel Ricciardo, he returned to the F1 grid sooner than he expected. Even if the Australian driver intended to return in the 2024 F1 season, at least following his sacking from McLaren. Now, thanks to the Red Bull higher-ups, he has made it with just ten races into the 2023 season, thus concluding his $18,000,000 sabbatical.

Admittedly, Ricciardo received $18,000,000 from McLaren after the Papayas terminated his contract with one year remaining. Following his exit from the Woking-based team and a series of underwhelming performances, the Honey Badger thought to spend the entire 2023 season outside of racing.

However, with Nyck de Vries failing to prove his worth and Ricciardo finding great sector times in Silverstone last week, things turned around for him in a matter of hours. As the 33-year-old arrived in Hungary for the upcoming race, he couldn’t express what to feel as he said, “Doesn’t feel that farring, feels familiar.”

Nostalgic Daniel Ricciardo explains his return to the team

Even though the team has rebranded into AlphaTauri, this is the same outfit with whom Ricciardo started his Red Bull journey in 2012 [Toro Rosso]. As he finally made the return, he was left baffled when he was asked to describe the situation.

Speaking about this in the Hungarian Grand Prix press conference, the Honey Badger said, “Yeah, for sure,” when he was quizzed about his premature return. He soon added that getting back to the Red Bull family also added a great feeling for all.

Back to the grid and it feels this good. 🤩 pic.twitter.com/I822arT99G

— Oracle Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) July 11, 2023

Before this, Ricciardo revealed that it felt great to be back. And then, following his new F1 move, he emphasized that it hasn’t been that long since he left the grid, and now he is back with a smile.

Despite AlphaTauri return, Ricciardo’s focus is on Red Bull

In a recent interview with the F1 Nation podcast, Red Bull team principal Christian Horner revealed that Ricciardo has his eyes set on Red Bull. Although he will be racing with the Faenza-based team for the rest of the season, that is not his ultimate destination.

And to get that Red Bull seat, the 34-year-old must perform his best with the Italian team. And for that, he has a positive approach as he believes at AlphaTauri, he will not have the same problem he had at McLaren.

Ultimately, Daniel Ricciardo must live up to his name, outperform the young Yuki Tsunoda, and simultaneously hope that Sergio Perez continues his wretched run of performances. Only then will there be a slight chance of returning to Red Bull alongside Max Verstappen in 2024 or 2025.