Daniel Ricciardo, who is rumored to be replaced by Liam Lawson after this weekend’s F1 Singapore Grand Prix, has been posed some difficult questions to answer for his RB teammate Yuki Tsunoda and his former Red Bull teammate Max Verstappen.
Red Bull’s bosses and shareholders are expected to use the time off before the United States Grand Prix to consider RB’s driver line-up for the remainder of the season and into 2025, with Lawson being tipped to be a potential replacement after impressive performances in Ricciardo’s absence last year with a broken wrist.
Asked directly ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix whether he thought Ricciardo deserved to stay in F1 for next year, Verstappen interestingly sounded as if he was ready to part ways with his friend after three years at Red Bull between 2016 and 2018.
“Daniel is a nice guy and I think he has proven himself as a Formula 1 driver, and he’s also my friend,” Verstappen said.
“I think it’s never a good thing to be in that situation, but at the same time, I don’t think he should feel sorry for himself.”
“At certain stages in his career things may not go as planned, but he has achieved so much that others would envy.”
“So even if this is my last race, I can look back on a great career that not many people achieve and have the path to achieve something else in another life.”
“Maybe I could try some other racing series, or just relax and enjoy life on my farm (Ricciardo has his own farm in his native Australia).”
“The bottom line is, he’s a good guy and for me, it’s not really important whether he deserves to be here or not, honestly. There are a lot of people who deserve to race in F1, and some who don’t. That’s the way it is in sport and I think that’s how it is.”
Ricciardo said ahead of the start of the Singapore Grand Prix there was no indication he would be fired immediately but acknowledged his future remained uncertain, with a decision likely to be made after Sunday’s race.
Courtesy Of Red Bull Content Pool
RB Formula 1’s Yuki Tsunoda and Daniel Ricciardo pose for a photo at the launch of HUGO’s new team kit, F1 Singapore Grand Prix, Wednesday, September 18, 2024 (Hugo Menswear Store)
When asked the same question, Yuki Tsunoda answered, “I agree with Max.”
“I have a lot of respect for him. Let’s see what happens, but I like him and I think we all want to see him continue racing.”
“So it doesn’t really matter whether he’s suitable for F1 next season, what matters is that we want to see him driving.”
“Like Max said, he’s accomplished a lot, so we’ll see what happens.”
Courtesy Of Red Bull Content Pool
RB Formula 1’s Daniel Ricciardo, Yuki Tsunoda, team principal Laurent Mekies, and CEO Peter Bayer unveil the special livery in collaboration with HUGO in the pit lane, Thursday, September 19, 2024, F1 Singapore Grand Prix (Marina Bay Street Circuit)