Daniel Ricciardo Confesses to What Ruined His “Appetite” for Mercedes Role

Daniel Ricciardo has always been a fan favorite. So when the news broke of him leaving the Formula 1 grid, all the fans and the F1 fraternity were saddened. However, as things stand, the Honey Badger has accepted a deal with Red Bull to be their reserve driver for next year. But as you might remember, he was also in talks with the Silver Arrows. So what happened to that?

In the latest edition of ‘In the fast lane’ podcast, Daniel Ricciardo opened up about why he didn’t go for the Mercedes deal and preferred to join the Red Bull camp.

After leaving Red Bull in 2018, Renault and McLaren didn’t suit the 33-year-old. In light of this, earlier this year, Daniel Ricciardo‘s contract was terminated by the British racing team. Post the announcement, the Australian talked to Mercedes boss Toto Wolff. But the jolly Australian eventually joined his ex-team over the Silver Arrows. In the podcast, he reveals what made him choose the deal with the Milton Keynes side.

He said, “So there was talks with Mercedes as well and yeah, I was, also let’s say like appreciative of their engagement as well because there was certainly an appetite for that. It stalled a little bit and then the Red Bull staff started to make more and more sense and that had more legs and it was kind of naturally progressed as it did. But I think there was a part of me as well where, Like even when I was at Red Bull, you know, Mercedes was always a team, of course.”

He added, “I mean, they were dominating. I was looking at and whatever. I had some conversations with them back in the day and to have a few more now, it was nice just to still be valued by obviously you know some top teams after, obviously the couple of years I’ve had. But then there was the Red Bull thing became more serious, it made more sense.”

READ MORE: Homecoming Emotions Aside, Daniel Ricciardo Once Revealed Receiving “A Lot of Sh*t” From Red Bull F1 Taskmaster

Ricciardo parted ways with Mclaren owing to the disappointing stint. Post the announcement, many cited it as a bad move from Ricciardo, not being on the grid for 2023. But now, his ex-team boss says, he can get an instant F1 return.

Zak Brown believes Daniel Ricciardo can make an instant return to F1

Ricciardo and McLaren mutually agreed to part ways after the partnership failed to show magic on the track. After looking at various options, Ricciardo’s search ended at Red Bull, where he agreed to be the third driver. His decision to be a reserve for the Milton Keynes side got various critiques. But his ex-team boss Zak Brown believes the offer can lead to an instant comeback in F1.

Brown gave an example of Nyck de Vries, who did a commendable job and ended up getting a seat at the AlphaTauri. Brown said, “Look at what happened with Nyck with one good session. All of a sudden he became hot property.”

“So if one of those guys [at Red Bull] couldn’t race for some reason, and he [Ricciardo] hopped in and all of a sudden he took that car to where it is now, it can just turn on a dime.”

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With both of the Red Bull drivers doing a great job at the track, do you think the Australian driver can get a chance to sit behind Red Bull’s wheel?