David Croft warns Red Bull that ‘Daniel Ricciardo is not the future’ for them

Thomas Maher
Daniel Ricciardo jokes with Christian Horner. November 2022.

Daniel Ricciardo jokes with Christian Horner at announcement of Red Bull third driver role. November 2022.

Sky F1’s David Croft believes Red Bull should be looking to the future with driver signings, saying Daniel Ricciardo is not that driver…

Ricciardo was recently re-signed by Red Bull in a third driver role, marking a return to the squad with whom Ricciardo made his reputation as one of F1’s leading lights between 2014 and his departure at the end of 2018.

While Ricciardo’s star has diminished significantly in the years since, mainly due to two lacklustre years at McLaren, the move to sign Ricciardo could be seen as a way to put pressure on Sergio Perez for the second cockpit as the Mexican driver’s contract expires at the conclusion of 2024.

Max Verstappen has made it clear he has no intention of remaining in F1 in the long-term, indicating that he may even call time on his F1 career at the conclusion of his current Red Bull contract at the conclusion of 2028 – Verstappen would be just 31 years old.

David Croft: Red Bull need to think about life after Max Verstappen

If Verstappen does choose to walk away, Croft said Red Bull need to be ready to fill the huge void their two-time World Champion will leave in his wake.

“I think that they’re two very different styles of driver [Ricciardo and Perez],” Croft said in a Sky F1 review of the 2022 season, when asked about the strengths of both.

“They’re both capable of winning races but, to me, they win races in very different ways.

“I hate to say this, I think Daniel is a terrific bloke, but he is not the future for Red Bull – not by any stretch of the imagination, mainly because of age.

“When Max spoke at the end of the season and talked about potentially stopping at the age of 31, that’s a big revelation to me. He’s already thinking about the time he stops racing. If he’s thinking that, then Red Bull should be thinking it too. Personally, I’d be trying to identify somebody else to come in in 2024 if Checo’s [Perez] not the answer.”

Karun Chandhok: How do Red Bull evaluate Daniel Ricciardo?

While Red Bull team boss Christian Horner has poured cold water on the idea of Ricciardo testing for Red Bull during 2023, instead keeping the Australian largely in a marketing-based driving role, Sky F1 pundit Karun Chandhok said there isn’t any other feasible ways to gauge Ricciardo’s current talents if the eight-time Grand Prix winner is to secure a return to the grid in the future.

“I’m waiting to see how it plays out, because the last time Daniel drove a Red Bull was in 2018. And Formula 1 cars have changed a lot,” Chandhok said.

“It’s like a different category now, I think. Max has changed a lot, the trajectory he’s been on, he’s a 25-year-old with confidence. I think Daniel versus Checo is an interesting fight for the ’24 seat.

“How do they evaluate Daniel? That’s what I’m interested to see. Because, yeah, they can put him in the sim, but it’s not the same as driving the real car. So will they give him a go in a test somewhere? That’s what I’d like to see… how do they genuinely evaluate the Daniel Ricciardo of today?”

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