‘Ricciardo’s not an option, even if Albon slumps’

Michelle Foster
Daniel Ricciardo

Daniel Ricciardo

Daniel Ricciardo is going to need that Ferrari drive if he wants to win races in 2021 as Red Bull won’t consider him no matter what.

At present only three teams in Formula 1 can be considered genuine contenders; Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull.

Those three teams are the only ones who have won grands prix in the past five seasons.

And one of those, Ferrari, has a seat open for next season after announcing that Sebastian Vettel is definitely leaving the team.

Ricciardo has been linked to the German’s spot, with reports claiming the Aussie and Carlos Sainz are the leading contenders for the second Ferrari seat.

That’s a good thing for Ricciardo because Red Bull has made it clear he’s not welcome.

Ricciardo left the team at the end of the 2018 season to join Renault, replaced by Pierre Gasly who was in turn replaced by Alexander Albon.

The team is hoping that it has found a winner in Albon, believing that he has what it takes to win races.

But if he doesn’t, Ricciardo is not on the short list to replace him.

Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko told SPORT1: “If Alex Albon performs as he did last year – and I strongly believe – he will stay.

“Therefore Ricciardo has almost no chance.

“Only if Albon has a total slump for some reason will we to think about other drivers but that doesn’t just include Ricciardo.”

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