Daniel Ricciardo is not in the mood to take any slander after what has been a sluggish start to his 2024 campaign. Former F1 champion Alan Jones commented that the former McLaren driver may be “past” his best, seeing his performance in the opening two races. Ricciardo has reacted to these comments from the 1980 champion to claim that he doesn’t need to prove himself despite a dip in his form.
Speaking to 10 News First in Perth, the Australian driver reflected on the start of his 2024 season. As per an X video posted by the news outlet, he said, “It’s been a little bit of a steady, I’ll say a slower start to the year. But it’s only been 2 races so hopefully the season starts on the right foot now in Melbourne and that will be like the first one to get going.”
When the reporter asked about Jones’ comments, Ricciardo asserted, “Not at All”. The 34-year-old has not been in the best of form ever since he left Renault in 2020 to go to McLaren. To top it up, his adaptability issues at McLaren only affected his confidence more to leave him out of a seat for 2023.
Starting this fresh chapter after a disrupted return in the second half of last year, Ricciardo has not been up to the mark that Red Bull expects from him. The 8-time Grand Prix winner wants to return to his former team at Milton Keynes but is underperforming against Yuki Tsunoda at RB.
Adding to this, there is talk about younger drivers like Oliver Bearman and Liam Lawson getting a chance in F1 to replace some of the older underperforming drivers. So, Ricciardo needs to step his game up in 2024, if he wishes to survive in F1.
Is this the endgame for Daniel Ricciardo?
One would have wondered where could Daniel Ricciardo go after his sacking from McLaren. While he voiced to take a top team seat only, his recent form wasn’t backing that demand. Fortunately Red Bull offered him the olive branch to return as a reserve driver and thus it earned him the second coming at their sister team.
However, at the age of 34, Ricciardo needs to deliver and beat the inexperienced Yuki Tsunoda. The Honey Badger has talked about how he wishes for a “fairytale” finish to his career with a return to the Austrian team. But that may be a far-fetched possibility if Ricciardo can’t beat the Japanese.
Leading the underperforming V-CARB team is what Red Bull expects from the Aussie. That is the reason they re-hired him. So, if Tsunoda starts doing that job instead of Ricciardo, it doesn’t bode well for the 34-year-old’s Red Bull dreams.
If Ricciardo can improve his performance in 2024, it is a good sign. On top of it, he would also need Sergio Perez to crumble into a poor string of performances like 2023. Given how Perez has started the season, it seems likely that Red Bull will retain the Mexican for 2025.
So, it is a combination of multiple factors that will propel Ricciardo to a Red Bull return. First and foremost, it is his performances against Tsunoda that are under his control and need to improve. Because if not, even his good rapport with the Milton Keynes team may not be enough to save his F1 future.
