According to the latest reports, McLaren is considering Sebastian Vettel or Daniel Ricciardo, as potential replacements for Carlos Sainz. With Vettel and Ferrari parting ways next year, many expect Sainz to replace him. While Ferrari hasn’t announced a second driver yet, Sainz is in the driver’s seat to succeed Vettel. As a result, McLaren needs to make some important choices in the coming days.

Sebastian Vettel or Daniel Ricciardo?

Sebastian Vettel is a key player in the 2021 driver market. His Ferrari exit kickstarted the unofficial silly season, and his next move could shake things up. The 4 times World Champion is out of contract at the end of this year. Many reports hinted at McLaren swapping Sainz with Vettel.

However, Vettel is not the only driver with an expiring contract. Daniel Ricciardo is keen to win that elusive World Championship and is likely to do everything to land a competitive drive. Initially, some publications reported that Ricciardo had already signed with Mclaren. However, that may not be entirely true.

According to the Austrian site – Motorprofis.at, McLaren is keen on signing Sebastian Vettel for next year. However, the Woking outfit is also keeping an eye out on Sainz and Ricciardo simultaneously. Given that Ferrari announcing Sainz is a mere formality at this stage, the second McLaren seat has some heavyweight contenders.

Choosing between Daniel and Seb isn’t easy as each driver has his own strengths and weaknesses. In Ricciardo’s case, he’s marginally younger, hungry as ever for World Championships and is likely to hurt McLaren to a lesser degree, financially.

On the other hand, Seb brings in a ton of experience, is a proven World Champion in F1, and very level headed. It’s not an easy choice by any stretch of the imagination,  but McLaren need to work things out quickly.

According to Motorsport-total.com, McLaren could announce its 2021 driver lineup by the end of the week. Losing Sainz is a blow but McLaren has plenty to look forward to in 2021. With the changing regulations on the horizon and the team’s positive growth, Mclaren is on the right path in F1. Moreover, the switch to Mercedes power next year is only a good thing.