After it was made official that Daniel Ricciardo would be parting ways with McLaren after the 2022 season does that put his F1 career in risk of an abrupt end?
Daniel Ricciardo’s McLaren tenure is officially over after an up and down two years, which saw the Aussie struggle for a large portion.
Ricciardo’s disappointing run with McLaren has been plagued with technical issues, race management and qualifying pace, with his win in Monza coming as the only real highlight during his time.
Rumours had been swirling in the last two months as many reported that McLaren would opt to sign fellow Aussie, Oscar Piastri to Ricciardo’s seat in 2023.
After Piastri publicly rejected Alpine’s offer for a 2023 seat, it seemed inevitable that he would be announced in the McLaren seat and Ricciardo would find an agreement for the final year of his deal.
With the official announcement of Ricciardo’s departure coming through early on Thursday morning, Australian F1 fans are eagerly awaiting what is up next for the honey badger, with reports of a couple of other F1 teams chasing his services. So where will Daniel Ricciardo be in 2023?
Haas
The first of the F1 teams to reportedly be in contact with Ricciardo is Haas and this looks like a perfect match for the Aussie, on paper.
With Mick Schumacer not signed beyond 2023, Haas are one of the only teams with a seat yet to be filled for next year. Although Haas would be the biggest downgrade of Ricciardo’s F1 career, the American-based team have shown plenty of potential this year with current Haas driver Kevin Magnussen finishing in a respectable fifth place in the opening race of the season.
Off the track, the relationship between Ricciardo and fellow fan-favourite team principal Guenther Steiner would make for some sensational viewing throughout the year.
The pressure would firmly be off Ricciardo for the first time since he joined Red Bull in 2014 and it could be just what he needs in order to revive his storied F1 career.
Haas won’t be fighting for podiums anytime soon, thus Ricciardo will likely be fighting for the last of the points in a car that has shown impressive race pace in 2022.
This move would also give Ricciardo a direct avenue into one of his favourite racing competitions in NASCAR – with the Stewart-Haas racing team.
This seems the most likely move with reports stating that Steiner has made contact with Ricciardo and a deal could be struck very soon.
Alpine
Could Ricciardo rejoin the team he left just two years ago? It seems more likely than once thought. Alpine have lost two of their drivers for 2023 and now are in need of a second driver to go alongside Esteban Ocon. Ricciardo’s stint with the then ‘Renault’ team saw him make massive strides in his racing, with the Aussie improving on 54 points in 2019 to 114 points in 2020, with two podiums.
Although, when Ricciardo confirmed he was leaving Renault with a year left on his deal, the officials of the team were not impressed and seemingly burnt a bridge with the Aussie. However, after two years and with many of those top-ranking officials no longer with the team, there is still a strong possibility Ricciardo could join Alpine in 2023.
Alpine are running low on F1 experienced drivers and would likely have to approach a young and unproven driver from the lower categories in order to fill the second seat in 2023. With Piastri and Alonso out the door, Ricciardo could be thrown a F1 lifeline in a familiar setting.
NASCAR or Supercars
If Ricciardo was unable to secure a seat in F1 for 2023, these two options would all but certainly be one of his next destinations.
Ricciardo has always been known for his love of American culture and one day following in the footsteps of his hero, NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt. A move to NASCAR would all but rule out a potential return to F1 for Ricciardo, but would see him living all-year round in his current off-season holiday spot of Los Angeles.
NASCAR would still be able to pay Ricciardo some of the large amounts he is used to in F1, but it will still be a downgrade. The competitiveness of NASCAR is considerably lower than F1 as well, which could play into Ricciardo’s favour coming into a relatively new sport. If Ricciardo was unable to secure a seat in NASCAR or if he opted for a move home, the obvious final answer is Supercars.
Supercars would thrive with Ricciardo as the new star, bringing in a new global audience to the sport in Australia. Although this move seems like it would be the final step in his career, if it was to happen in 2023 the sport would grow to unprecedented heights. Ricciardo could assert himself amongst some of the greatest Australian racers to grace the sport and would be an emotional return to the homeland.
