Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo, once revealed the insights on his payroll or lack thereof. Ricciardo had just about started his journey in the F1 world, and in an interview, the young Australian spilled the tea on his life and all things F1; including his pay-check, amongst other things. The Honey Badger revealed that back in the time when he made his F1 debut with HRT, Red Bull was his sponsor. Despite that, they paid him only for the race seat, not a salary.

Further admitted that the year 2012 would have ‘some’ money in store for him, as his then team, Toro Rosso (now AlphaTauri), would most likely be making a payment. Little did he know that things would turn around pretty quickly. Back then, he told Australia’s ‘Fox Channel’ that he was expecting a pay. He said, “A little bit. Let’s say I can buy myself a pair of jeans now, but not a mansion.”

Furthermore, Ricciardo admitted that he was making “less than” half a million dollars. He also added, “I figured, just to keep my feet on the ground, I won’t get too beautiful. So I’ve got a mouth full of beautiful metal instead.”

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As Ricciardo made his way back to the Red Bull family, current world champion, Max Verstappen, gets behind his former teammate’s decision to return to the team. Although, he states that Ricciardo shouldn’t have left.

Max Verstappen is a little disappointed that Ricciardo didn’t extend his time at Red Bull the first time around

The Dutch Lion, Max Verstappen, believes that the Honey Badger is a good, talented, racer. Having had the opportunity, the Australian should’ve stayed longer as Verstappen’s teammate in the Austrian team. Nonetheless, the Dutchman is glad that he found his way back to the home team after all these years.

Max Verstappen shared his thoughts in a recent interview with Formule1.nl. He said, “It would have been better for Daniel if he had stayed longer at Red Bull at the time. I did talk to him about it. It’s also about making yourself feel comfortable somewhere.”

However, there is no point in crying over spilled milk, and therefore, it is paramount that the Honey Badger feels comfortable in his next steps in the field, according to Verstappen.

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Daniel Ricciardo’s year off of the grid will help the Australian decide the direction he’d want to step forward in. Which way should he go? Is he better off as a reserve driver? Or would you want to see him behind the wheel again?