Haas Snubbing Daniel Ricciardo for $10 Million Wage Demand Set to Shown on Drive to Survive Season 5

Daniel Ricciardo losing his McLaren seat for 2023 was one of the biggest talking points of last season. The Aussie’s two-year stint in Surrey was abysmal, to say the least, and despite having another year left on his contract, team CEO Zak Brown decided to pull the plug early.

Ricciardo’s McLaren exit has been documented by Netflix and will feature on season 5 of Drive to Survive, which is set to release on 24th February 2023. However, another aspect of Ricciardo’s miserable year will be showcased on the superhit docuseries.

After being sacked by McLaren, Ricciardo was looking for other available spots within the F1 grid. As it was widely reported, he was in touch with American outfit Haas but they ended up rejecting him, despite him being one of the finest drivers on the grid with seven race wins to his name.

According to recent reports, the Kannapolis-based squad snubbed Ricciardo because of his mammoth $10 million a year wage demand.

Also read: “Sebastian Vettel Won Because He Was 9 KG Lighter”: Mark Webber Recalls 2010 Championship Loss to Team Mate

Did Daniel Ricciardo reject Haas?

When Ricciardo exited McLaren, he insisted that he did not want to race in F1 just for the sake of it. The 33-year-old wanted to drive a car that would give him a fighting chance at the front of the grid.

There were opportunities at teams like Williams and Haas, but it was initially believed that he did not want to drive for the backmarkers. However, the possibility of Haas or Williams not entertaining Ricciardo because of his salary demand is very high.

Drive to Survive is very popular among fans because they get behind-the-scenes content from situations like this. If the recent reports turn out to be true, we will witness Haas boss and fan favorite Guenther Steiner snub Ricciardo on Netflix later this month.

Also read: Max Verstappen Isn’t Alone Complaining About $1 Million Fee to Drive in 2023; 11 Years Ago Another F1 Champion Complained About It

Ricciardo back to where it all started

Ricciardo was always regarded as one of the fiercest competitors in F1. His best stint the sport came between 2014 and 2018 when he was driving for Red Bull. With the Austrian squad, he won seven races and stood on the podium 29 times.

He left them for Renault in 2019 but his two seasons with the Enstone-based team were underwhelming and what followed was even bigger disappointment at the papaya outfit. After he lost out on his F1 seat, the Perth-born driver returned to where it all started.

After the culmination of the 2022 season, Ricciardo announced that he will return to Red Bull as a third driver behind Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez. He will be involved in testing and simulation work at the team’s factory in Milton-Keynes and also take part in promotional/marketing activities.