Despite Daniel Ricciardo Nurturing “Fairytale” Dreams, Max Verstappen’s Preference for a Rival Dubbed Better Alternative

Daniel Ricciardo is set for an F1 return. Maybe. Considering he’s Red Bull’s third driver, and Sergio Perez’s form hasn’t been the best lately, you would think he’s returning to Red Bull. But as much as Daniel wants his “fairytale ending” to F1 with Red Bull, he’s not going to get that seat alongside Max Verstappen anytime soon. 

Ricciardo is in contention for a seat at AlphaTauri next season, most likely alongside Yuki Tsunoda. But if he’s not tied to the second seat at Red Bull, it begs the question: who might replace Perez? Well, the same driver who consistently outperformed and outshone him at McLaren—and is partially responsible for Daniel not having a seat this year—might just steal his fairytale ending. Who is it? Lando Norris.

Max Verstappen would be “comfortable” with Lando Norris

Lando Norris, in his McLaren, has graced the Formula 1 world with some impeccable performances since he joined the sport in 2019. But McLaren has failed to build a competitive car—and does justice to the talent everyone thinks Norris has—for the past two seasons. After promising him a championship-winning car at the beginning of his career, the Woking outfit has failed to deliver despite its upward trajectory in 2020 and 2021. And now, Norris might be looking for a new team. Could that be Red Bull?

In the build-up to the Austrian GP this weekend, veteran F1 journalist Peter Windsor discussed talking points before F1 goes racing again. In the YouTube Live, a viewer asked whether Norris moving to Red Bull would be good. He replied, “Yeah, obviously, if Lando was offered a Red Bull seat, he would take it. And maybe Red Bull would offer him a drive. I would imagine he’d be a guy Max would be comfortable with.” Max and Lando have always had a good relationship with mutual respect, so much so that after the Spanish GP qualifying—where Lando qualified third—Max said he was surprised to see a McLaren so high up, adding that he always expects Lando to be fighting at the top. 

There’s no doubt Max is fast, but he believes Lando is fast as well. Even if he may not think he’s at the same level as himself, Max knows he’s there or thereabouts. Windsor believes Norris would be a better fit at Red Bull than Perez. He added, “Lando’s a good guy. He’s quick, he’s quite capable of winning, and he’d do a better job than Perez over a season.”

Read More: “Would Be a Real Shame”: Daniel Ricciardo’s Potential “Rookie” Mistake Called Out by F1 World After Red Bull Switch Seems Unlikely

As much as the prospect of Norris shifting to Red Bull might excite anyone but McLaren, even Windsor knows he is under contract with the Woking team until the end of 2025. Will Lando try to find a way out, or is there a chance he’ll stay at McLaren, given how they promised him the world a few days ago?

McLaren’s new upgrades could make Lando Norris stay

To say McLaren is underperforming this season would be an understatement. The situation is bad, and considering how it promised Norris a good car and failed to deliver, the team is at risk of losing the talented Brit to another team. But Team Principal Andrea Stella has given the drivers, and fans hope after announcing a significant overhaul of upgrades the MCL60 will see in the coming weeks.

The first round of upgrades will come to the Austrian GP, a track McLaren has done well at. Considering it was also where Norris achieved his first podium in F1, he would be hoping the upgrades were as good as Stella is making them out to be so that he could at least come close to a podium. The upgrades will continue into the British and Hungarian GP, and come the summer break, McLaren would hope the Briton will be happy with the progress it’s predicting.

Watch This Story: Is Oscar Piastri Already Justifying His Talent By Performing Better Than Daniel Ricciardo at McLaren?

Will Daniel Ricciardo make his way back to a driving seat in Red Bull, or do you think Lando Norris will be offered a seat he can’t refuse?