There was a time when Daniel Ricciardo was the name on everyone’s minds when it came to the future of F1. He was a young talent with incredible overtaking skills. On his debut season with Red Bull, he scored eight podiums, three out of which were race wins. Fast forward to today, he is left stranded and seat-less for the coming season.

Jacques Villeneuve, a former F1 champion himself, has commented on Ricciardo’s precarious position. He is unhappy with the circumstances Ricciardo has found himself in. However, he is even more unhappy with what Danny Ric plans to do now.

There are reports that the Australian is considering a 1-year sabbatical from F1. On this, the Canadian told F1 TV “It could make him lazy.”

“You can take a year off if you’re an Alonso, a Schumacher, if you’ve been world champion and won a lot of races, if you know in the paddock that you’ll always be at your best, no matter what season. After four bad years, don’t do that.”

According to Villeneuve, “You take what you can get. If you have an offer to drive in Formula 1, then you take every cockpit. In public you will say you don’t want to drive for one of the back teams, but if that’s the only contract you can get, then you’ll sign it.”

He feels the rut can be broken only by driving and improving, not by leaving.

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While Villeneuve suggests Ricciardo should be joining one of the back-of-the-grid teams, it is not like the Aussie is spoiled with choices. There haven’t been many offers for his services for the coming season.

What options does Daniel Ricciardo have?

Ricciardo is contracted with McLaren until the end of the 2022 season. He is being replaced by his compatriot, another young talent, Oscar Piastri. 

While there were suggestions that Alpine might be keen on the Aussie’s services, their position has changed. Villeneuve believes his form is to blame for that. “Alpine have no reason to take him, especially when he’s driven there before. The modern cars just don’t seem to suit his driving style.”

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There have also been rumors of Haas and Williams considering Daniel for their seats. However, some pessimism has been seen on Guenther Steiner’s side for the move. He said, “But his [Daniel Ricciardo] form isn’t great at the moment and we don’t know what he’s going to do. Maybe he’ll sit out a year.”

Daniel Ricciardo has said he wants to stay in F1. However, only if “under the right circumstances…it’s purely going to be on where I feel like it’d be the most competitive.”

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It is painful to watch the cheery personality go through such a tough phase in their career. A once celebrated talent is under the threat of being an also-ran. We can only hope he comes back stronger.