The latest news of the AlphaTauri garage is that Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda will continue driving for the team in the 2024 season. While most people are happy to see Ricciardo secure his spot for another year, IndyCar star Scott McLaughlin claims the Australian should have replaced Sergio Perez at Red Bull.
Posting his thoughts on his X profile, McLaughlin claimed Ricciardo had been the only one to have “pushed” Max Verstappen as a driver. As such, Ricciardo should be Verstappen’s partner, while Lawson and Tsunoda should continue racing together. The claim sparked outrage amongst fans and gave way to some heated exchange between them and McLaughlin on social media.
McLaughlin left fending for himself after comments about Daniel Ricciardo
In an exchange of thoughts on Social Media Platform X, one user asked McLaughlin what his ideal lineup would be if he were the Team Principal at Red Bull and had to make the decision for them as well as AlphaTauri. To this, the IndyCar driver replied he would take Perez out and pair Ricciardo and Verstappen together while investing in Lawson and Tsunoda at Toro Rosso for the future.
“Perez out, Riccardo back in at Red Bull (only guy to have pushed max like ever), put Lawson and Yuki back at Toro Rosso and build for the future. Lawson is a jet, he will be good. Like Piastri.”
Backing his claim for Ricciardo, McLaughlin argued, “He did win Monza, if I’m not mistaken, when the opportunity arose.”
Been out of a full time seat for what at least 8 months and was rippin I reckon he’s fine from a competitive stand point. You don’t just forget how to drive https://t.co/4cwIyoidJD
— Scott McLaughlin (@smclaughlin93) September 22, 2023
McLaughlin told the users he would not back down after his comments by saying, “I’m cooking today – come at me.”
Did I say he did? https://t.co/V2dnrXlb0A
— Scott McLaughlin (@smclaughlin93) September 22, 2023
Imagine sitting behind an account without a name or photo and typing that. https://t.co/4ebZBZ5sA7
— Scott McLaughlin (@smclaughlin93) September 22, 2023
Ricciardo closer to a Red Bull seat than ever before
After leaving Red Bull following the 2018 season, Ricciardo returned to the team as their reserve driver at the start of the 2023 season. Following de Vries’ axing, Ricciardo got a seat in Red Bull’s sister team- AlphaTauri. This move gave the Australian a chance to prove his mettle to Red Bull and hope for a return to his old seat in the team, with Perez’s continued struggles.
Despite the injury, the ‘Honey Badger’ remains a top prospect to replace the Mexican should he vacate the seat after the 2024 season.
McLaughlin’s claims could become a reality only a year later than he expected. With Red Bull’s top personnel publicly claiming Perez’s seat in the team is secure for the remainder of his contract (2024 season), any driver, including Ricciardo, will have to wait for at least one more season before there is a reshuffling of the driver lineup for the constructor’s champions.
