“Why is he still in F1?,” Jacques Villeneuve asked about Daniel Ricciardo during a Sky Sports broadcast during the 2024 Canadian Grand Prix. Villeneuve who is an ex F1 champion stood at the track named after his father and began firing shots at the 8x Grand Prix winner. He went on to justify his harsh question by stating that for the last 4-5 years, the teams have been given an excuse on his behalf about the car not being on par to win a race. But understanding the exclusive and limited nature of the sport, one needs to understand that if a driver cannot do it anymore, they should gracefully vacate the place for new talent.

Though Dany Ric clapped back at Jacques by starting the race in P5 and ending it in P8, the debate about his stay in F1 hasn’t died down. For a brief time when Sergio Perez’s dwindling performance raised eyebrows, it was understood that Daniel might be given a last chance and that too next to the mighty Max Verstappen. But with Christian Horner’s assurance of Checo staying with the defending champions, that door seems closed for the Australian. To add to the pressure, Red Bull juniors like Liam Lawson are in line for their chance at F1. What does the future hold?

“He’s never going to succeed again”- Dutch analyst Tom Coronel passes a harsh verdict on Daniel Ricciardo

Daniel Ricciardo is out of contract at the end of this year. The VCARB driver made a dramatic comeback last year after being half a season away from F1. His ugly split with McLaren came as a shock to the Formula 1 world. Red Bull came as his knight in shining armor and offered him an ambassadorial role. This was the foundation of his F1 return, as during the summer break, he tested RB19 and came very close to Max’s lap times. This earned him an immediate entry back to the grid and Nyck de Vries’ shock exit.

Dutch analyst Tom Coronel told Formule1.nl, “A few years ago when Daniel Ricciardo left Red Bull and went for the money at Renault, I already knew it. He chose the dough and not his racing heart. It’s a nice story, the Ricciardo 2.0 who has learned from his mistakes—blah, blah, blah—but he just doesn’t get it anymore. He didn’t succeed at McLaren, he didn’t succeed at AlphaTauri, and he’s never going to succeed again.”

“Be honest with yourself. He is an ideal motorsport co-commentator or analyst. He is funny, has flair, and can handle anything well. Go and enjoy that, but stop doing Formula 1. And at a training team, he has no business at all, anyway. Formula 1 is the class for the world’s top-20 drivers and he hasn’t been part of that for a long time.” A very harsh verdict by Tom is something that a few voices have been echoing in the paddock. The important thing to take into account is that his performance will not only decide his future but also that of Lawson.

Daniel Ricciardo is a key factor in deciding his biggest competitor; Liam Lawson’s future

“We will announce what happens next with Liam Lawson in September,” said Helmut Marko, giving an update about their most eligible in waiting. It is understood that Lawson has been promised a seat for 2025 or else he will be free to explore new avenues (a situation similar to the whole Oscar Piastri’s Alpine-McLaren switch). But what seems straightforward with four seats in hand, but there are complications. There are too many suitors for those four seats. The twist is that two of those seats are not available for next year (that of Max Verstappen and Yuki Tsunoda). And Checo has been given assurance for the rest of 2024.

We need to understand how great Lawson has been in an F1 car. Last year, he nailed his super-sub role when he replaced the injured Ricciardo. He scored points on his debut in the most difficult race of the calendar; Singapore. This impressed Milton Keynes so much that he earned a chance at a seat in 2025. According to Lawrence Barretto, “Much will depend on how Ricciardo does in the opening few races after the summer break. If his form drops, Lawson is the candidate to replace him for next season.”

The question of whether it will be Dany Ric or Kiwi Lawson will be answered in a month. Be that as it may, F1 goes back to racing in a week, and how Daniel Ricciardo performs will set the ball rolling for every stakeholder in this situation.