F1 News: Red Bull close to Daniel Ricciardo deal ahead of 2023

Daniel Ricciardo is close to joining Red Bull in 2023.

Red Bull has revealed that Daniel Ricciardo is close to joining the team ahead of 2023 as a third diver and team ambassador. 

Helmut Marko was the first to spark reports, telling the media in Abu Dhabi that Ricciardo had already reached an agreement with the Austrians squad. 

However, the Red Bull advisor has retracted his statement since then, explaining that the initial reporting was simply a mistranslation of his original comments. 

Despite this attempt to backtrack, all indications suggest that Daniel Ricciardo is set to join his former team next season - albeit in a different capacity. 

Speaking to the media, Christian Horner discussed Red Bull's interest in Ricciardo's services:

"Daniel is a big character, it's been disappointing to see his performance this year, but he's still one of the biggest names in Formula 1.

"Just with the demands on race drivers these days, from a marketing perspective alone, we're an active team and do many show runs and events. 

"So to have a driver of Daniel's profile and history with the team is only an asset for us. 

"It means he keeps in touch with Formula 1, and we'll obviously be using him on the simulator as well when we attend events."

Ricciardo will enter uncharted territory next season as he faces the difficult task of making a return to the grid in 2024. 

The volatility of the driver market could present some opportunities, so it will be crucial for the Australian to position himself to capitalise on any openings. 

Spending a year at Red Bull could provide the 33-year-old with a useful platform to plot his comeback, although it remains unclear if the top teams will be interested in offering Ricciardo a full-time drive. 

In any case, the 8-time race winner seems close to signing a deal with his former team.