In a conversation with Sergio Perez, Daniel Ricciardo was heard saying he will take a year off before returning to F1 in 2024.
Ricciardo’s nightmare McLaren stint will finally come to an end after seven more races. His move to the Surrey-based outfit seemed like a strong one on paper and a partnership with Lando Norris was something fans were actually looking forward to seeing.
Unfortunately for the honey badger, he was completely outperformed by his young teammate. The gap between them has been so big for the last year and a half that McLaren finally decided to pull the plug and ax him (even though he has a year left on his contract).
Ricciardo’s compatriot Oscar Piastri will replace him at the team. However, the 33-year-old’s future in F1 is up in the air for now. Some strong rumors have linked him to both Alpine and Haas. Both team bosses confirmed that they had discussions with Ricciardo over the last few weeks.
On the other hand, if things don’t go his way, there is a chance fans won’t see Ricciardo on the grid next year at all.
Also read: “A bowling average of 16.94”: Oscar Piastri choosing F1 over cricket was wise decision
Daniel Ricciardo tells Sergio Perez he will return in 2024
Ricciardo has not made any official status about his future. He repeatedly insists that he isn’t done with F1 and plans on coming back to the sport as soon as possible. Even though he wants to remain in F1, he acknowledges the fact that there aren’t a lot of opportunities available.
Ahead of last week’s Dutch GP, the Perth-born driver admitted that he will treat the remaining races this season as his last ever in F1. This was a cryptic hint towards what may well be a future F1 grid without Ricciardo being in it.
In Zandvoort, we didn’t get any word from Ricciardo on his 2023 plans. However, cameras may have caught him revealing his future to the world accidently while he was talking to Red Bull driver Sergio Perez. The two of them were walking in the pit lane when Ricciardo mentioned, “Take a year off, return in 2024.”
This upset quite a few fans on social media, who are distraught at the thought of Ricciardo not being in F1 next year.
Also read: Mark Webber accuses Alpine of exaggerating $11.5 Million investment on Oscar Piastri
