Christian Horner Makes Big Reveal About Timing Of Daniel Ricciardo Exit

Saajan Jogia | 4 Hours Ago

Daniel Ricciardo of Australia and Oracle Red Bull Racing speaks with Red Bull Racing Team Principal Christian Horner as he prepares to drive during Formula 1 testing at Silverstone Circuit on July 11, 2023 in Northampton, England. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images) / Red Bull Content Pool

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner disclosed significant details about Daniel Ricciardo's recent exit from the junior team VCARB, hinting that senior advisor Helmut Marko had considered replacing Ricciardo as early as the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona.

VCARB recently confirmed the official exit of the Australian driver, replacing him with Red Bull reserve driver Liam Lawson, who had long awaited a full-time F1 opportunity. Before the announcement, Ricciardo entered his final race weekend under a cloud of intense speculation about his departure, with rumors swirling around him at the Marina Bay Street Circuit.

Ricciardo was brought in last season to replace Nyck De Vries, with VCARB aiming to boost the team's performance and have him mentor Yuki Tsunoda. However, the current season proved difficult for the 35-year-old, as he was frequently outperformed by his Japanese teammate on multiple race weekends.

Horner revealed that Red Bull intended to use him as a backup plan, in case Sergio Perez's performance diminished further. Speaking on the F1 Nation Podcast, the Red Bull team boss confirmed that Ricciardo's lack of consistency led to his departure. He said:

“I think it was the lack of consistency.

“I mean, he started the season roughly, and then Miami was a weekend of two halves. The Friday and Saturday morning was fantastic, and it looked like the Daniel of old, defending against Ferraris and out-driving the car.

“But then the Saturday afternoon and the Sunday were disastrous.

“And even around Barcelona, Helmut wanted him out of the car, and there was already a lot of pressure on him there.”

Horner insisted that he did his best to retain Ricciardo, but at the end of the day, all drivers are expected to deliver. He added:

“I’ve done my very best to buy him as much time in the car to allow him to deliver, otherwise he would have been out of the car after Barcelona.

“I think that all the drivers are under pressure to deliver, but the reason that Daniel was in that car was to get himself back into a position to ultimately be there to pick up the pieces if Checo didn’t deliver.

“And the problem was they both had issues with form at varying times. Checo started the season very well, very strongly, and Daniel was struggling. And then obviously, as Checo lost form, Daniel found a bit of form, but it was never compelling enough to say, ‘Okay, you know, we should switch the two drivers.'”