Daniel Ricciardo is starting to enjoy his life as an F1 driver once again after struggling for a couple of years. The Australian’s two-year stint with McLaren was arguably the worst phase of his career, despite him being the last McLaren driver to win a Grand Prix. Having moved on from the horrors of his McLaren days, a resurgent Ricciardo is on a steady path to recovery with AlphaTauri.
Daniel Ricciardo was almost half a second faster than Yuki Tsunoda in race pace during the Las Vegas GP.
Average race pace (outliers removed):
Ricciardo – 1:39.481
Tsunoda – 1:39.931Danny Ric is quietly getting back into form & is set to end 2023 on a very strong note. pic.twitter.com/AYEyqXpGxZ
— Dan’s DRS Zone (@F1GuyDan) November 23, 2023
After McLaren and Ricciardo decided to terminate their contract, the Australian had nowhere left to go, but Red Bull stepped in to secure him as their third driver. Soon after, Ricciardo found himself in an AlphaTauri car following the exit of Nyck de Vries. However, a fracture to his left hand sent Ricciardo to the sidelines once again, but that, too, did not break his spirit. Reflecting on a rollercoaster of a year, the Honey Badger claimed it had been a year he never would have expected, as seen in the interview clip uploaded on YouTube by ‘F1 Off the Track.’
“I didn’t expect to be racing at all this year, let alone kind of, going through everything else. So, it’s something that I’m definitely happy, you know, the place I am and what I feel inside my heart.”
“It’s probably the first off-season that I would not really want an off-season.”
The 34-year-old is starting to look like the Daniel Ricciardo of old, who was once one of the best drivers on the grid. Aiming for the ultimate redemption by making a comeback to Red Bull. Ricciardo has not only impressed everyone with his driving skills, but his off-track influence has also played a crucial role in Christian Horner holding the Australian in high regard.
Christian Horner couldn’t be more happy with all that Daniel Ricciardo has achieved
It was a tough challenge for Ricciardo when he had to take over the driving duties in AlphaTauri right before the mid-season break. However, the Australian was up to the task and quickly showed how good he can be when in a comfortable atmosphere. Away from the tracks, Ricciardo’s influence in AlphaTauri has been immense, leaving Christian Horner massively impressed.
🚨 | According to AlphaTauri’s CEO Peter Bayer, Daniel Ricciardo is significantly impacting AlphaTauri, both from a sporting perspective and commercially.
Peter Bayer also explained that Ricciardo is attracting more sponsors to the team.#F1 #AlphaTauri pic.twitter.com/EVEFKHXy7a
— Desi Racing Co. (@DesiRacingco) November 21, 2023
Before Ricciardo’s arrival to the team, they only had two points on the board. After his arrival, the team has added 17 points to their tally. Given the same, Horner claimed that it was Ricciardo’s engineering inputs that showed them the path to improving their car. Even Yuki Tsunoda is benefiting from Ricciardo’s presence, given his strong outings race after race.
While AlphaTauri was once struggling at the bottom of the barrel, they now find themselves inching towards the middle of the park. With 21 points to their name, the team is five points clear of 9th-placed Alfa Romeo, and there is a possibility of the team finishing P7, with Williams only seven points ahead of them.
