McLaren CEO Zak Brown has made Daniel Ricciardo an IndyCar offer to keep the happy Australian in the McLaren family despite the early departure from Formula 1.
McLaren confirmed on Wednesday what had long been suspected and also denied: Daniel Ricciardo will leave the McLaren team after the current season, although he had a contract until the end of 2023. The Australian did not live up to expectations in the year and a half with the racing team from Woking, even though he caused a lot of celebration with his victory in Monza last year.
In the corresponding message from the team, there is talk of an amicable decision, but in his video of the farewell announcement, Ricciardo speaks of a team decision to change drivers. McLaren will likely field young Oscar Piastri alongside Lando Norris. However, the signing of Ricciardo’s compatriot caused displeasure at Alpine, because the young Australian was previously part of their youth program and was presented as the successor to Fernando Alonso, which the promoted team immediately denied.
The former Red Bull Racing driver did not want to say how things will continue with Ricciardo. “As for the future, I’m not sure what’s ahead of me yet. We’ll see, »explained Ricciardo, who at the same time emphasized that he still believed in himself and that he was not finished in Formula 1. The 33-year-old could, for example, succeed Alonso at Alpine. He is also associated with a cockpit with the Haas team, for which Mick Schumacher and Kevin Magnussen are currently driving.
McLaren CEO Zak Brown confirmed in his Ricciardo farewell media round that he had made an IndyCar offer to Ricciardo to keep him on board the McLaren family. “Yes we talked about it, he is an exceptional driver and for any team he competes for it is a privilege to have him drive. And we are active in different racing series. But he is very focused on Formula 1. McLaren’s door is always open, but I think he really wants to continue in Formula 1.”
Championship status (after 13 of 22 races)
driver
01. Verstappen 258 points
02. Leclerc 178
03. Pérez 173
04. Russell 158
05. Sainz 156
06. Hamilton 146
07. Norris 76
08. Ocon 58
09. Bottas 46
10. Alonso 41
11. Magnussen 22
12. Ricciardo 19
13. Gasly 16
14. Vettel 16
15. Schumacher 12
16. Tsunoda 11
17. Zhou 5
18. Stroll 4
19. Albon 3
20. Latif 0
21. Nico Hülkenberg (D) 0
Constructors’ Cup
01. Red Bull Racing 431 Punkte
02. Ferrari 334
03. Mercedes 304
04. Alpine 99
05. McLaren 95
06. Alfa Romeo 51
07. Haas 34
08. AlphaTauri 27
09. Aston Martin 20
10. Williams 3