Ahead of Australian Grand Prix, Daniel Ricciardo Outlines His Goals For 2023 After a ‘Tough Couple of Years’

Ahead of his home race in Australia, Daniel Ricciardo has outlined some personal and professional goals for himself. The 33-year-old finds himself only with a reserve driver role in 2023 after a difficult season with McLaren last year.

The Australian scored just 37 points all of last season and finished 11th in the Drivers’ Championship. And not just that, he finished a whopping 85 points behind McLaren teammate Lando Norris (122).

Since Ricciardo failed to secure a race seat this season, the 33-year-old may need to rethink his goals in 2023. While the Australian is keen to continue working hard with the hope of securing a seat for next season, he also wants to spend time doing other things for which he did not have the ‘luxury of time’ before.

‘Element of competitor still left’: Ricciardo on resetting his goals for 2023

Via a lengthy post on LinkedIn, Ricciardo explained how it had ‘been a tough couple of years’ for him. The Australian said that there is ‘an element of a competitor’ still left in him as he failed to secure a race seat for this season. As a result, he feels that there is a need for him to prove himself once again.

Ricciardo hopes to do so by being a team player at Red Bull and helping them contribute to the car’s development. He believes that doing so will help develop his abilities and boost his ‘confidence’ as well.

 

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After giving his fans a detailed description of his professional goals, the Australian also commented about his personal goals. The 33-year-old said he is keen on getting better at driving the 110 (cc motorbike).

He said he is keen to do so as he has always enjoyed riding motorbikes but has never got the ‘luxury of time’. The eight-time Grand Prix winner concluded his post by explaining how he loves learning new skills.

Marko provides a concerning update about Daniel Ricciardo

Red Bull F1 team advisor Helmut Marko has provided a concerning update about Daniel Ricciardo‘s status on the side. The 79-year-old has revealed that the Australian is unlikely to feature for the team in the 2023 season even if Max Verstappen or Sergio Perez could not race.

Marko has revealed that in such a situation, Red Bull would prefer younger drivers, such as Liam Lawson, over Ricciardo despite the Australian’s years of experience. Lawson is currently competing in the Japanese single-seater championship, which is believed to have more similarities to F1 than F2.

Marko’s comments clearly seem to suggest that Ricciardo has fallen down the pecking order. Hence, if the 33-year-old is keen on returning to F1 next season, he must hope that a team is looking for an experienced driver.