Ricciardo has eyes set on Bathurst and IndyCar

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Daniel Ricciardo McLaren

Daniel Ricciardo McLaren

Daniel Ricciardo is hoping that his move to McLaren will lead to opportunities to drive at Bathurst and in IndyCar.

The British team has ramped up its involvement in IndyCar in recent years, while CEO Zak Brown is a supercar enthusiast and part-owns the Walkinshaw Andretti United Supercars team, which is often a wildcard entry in the Bathurst 1000.

The American has previously stated that he’d like to see his F1 drivers have a go in other categories, and Ricciardo, who joined for 2021 and beyond, is very much up for doing so in the future.

“I do have to ask Zak. I need to – even if I don’t do the race – I need to drive a Supercar around Bathurst,” he told GP Racing as per Motorsport.com.

“Whether it’s a private test, or the actual race, I do need to do it. And I think now I have a good opportunity with Zak as a friend and a boss.

“He’s keen to try and get us into the other open-wheelers in the States, the IndyCars. So there’s a lot to do.”

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The Bathurst 1000 is the most famous race to take place at the Mount Panorama track in Australia.

However, the 2021 edition clashes with the Japanese Grand Prix, and it falls on the same weekend as a Formula 1 race most years.

Ricciardo wouldn’t be willing to do what Fernando Alonso has done in the past and miss an F1 round to race in another category, so the 12-hour event at the circuit, which usually takes place in February, seems a bigger possibility.

“When I signed with him [Brown], over the early phase of last year, we had these conversations and it was thrown in there: ‘We should get you to do the 12 Hours of Bathurst’,” he added.

“If he asked me and it worked logistically, I would say yes.”

A former McLaren driver will be returning to the team for the upcoming Indy 500, with Juan Pablo Montoya at the wheel, partnering Mexican Patricio O’Ward.

“I’m delighted for Juan to rejoin the McLaren family and return to the Indianapolis 500 with Arrow McLaren SP,” Brown said.

“He is an intensely competitive, highly versatile driver, with deep experience at the top level of motorsport and a big following.

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