Daniel Ricciardo would not be ready to get back behind the wheel yet, according to Christian Horner
Daniel Ricciardo is back at Red Bull as a reserve driver. He is expected to drive a car for tire testing, but according to Christian Horner, the driver wouldn't be ready to return to competition.
Returning to the Austrian stable at the end of last season, Daniel Ricciardo became a reserve driver for Red Bull. The Australian had left the team led by Christian Horner in 2018 after seven Grand Prix victories. After a stint at Renault and a very difficult time at McLaren, where the driver sporting the number 3 still managed to achieve a victory.
According to Christian Horner, team principal of the Red Bull team, the driver would not be ready to return as a full-time driver next season. It’s still very early for next year. Since his return to Milton Keynes, the 34-year-old driver has changed significantly since 2018. When he first arrived after Abu Dhabi last year, it was a bit of a shock as we didn’t really recognize him as the same driver who had left us a few years earlier, explained the Austrian team’s director to the media.
Since his return to Red Bull, the Australian driver has been working on the simulator during race weekends.
He has achieved a decent mileage. For most races in which he did not participate, he is back at the factory to support the simulation. He threw himself into it and provided very valuable feedback, said the British Red Bull driver.
Driving for Testing
Daniel Ricciardo is expected to take the wheel again in Great Britain for Pirelli tire testing. « Daniel is under contract for the year. He will be driving our car for the first time after the British Grand Prix. He is obviously a world-class driver, stated Christian Horner.
The director of the Red Bull racing team first wants to see how motivated the driver is before giving him a seat at AlphaTauri. « I think the first thing will be to see how he behaves and where his motivation lies, and then from there, it’s a question for AlphaTauri regarding their choices for the following season. »
« He worked hard on the simulator, he is now extremely competitive in what he does in the virtual world. So, if that translates into the real world, we’ll see, but during a tire test. We will get an impression of the level at which he performs, » says the team manager since 2005, excitedly.
