After a failed stint at McLaren, Daniel Ricciardo decided to take a year off from Formula 1. The Australian is currently in the 2nd year of his three-year contract. Despite that, the two parties decided to part ways mutually at the end of the season. But now Toto Wolff’s statement has caused a stir in the F1 community as the Honey Badger might not have to sit out for a full season.

Expectations were high when Daniel Ricciardo joined McLaren in 2021. The Woking-based team had completed its lineup after losing Carlos Sainz to Ferrari. The combination of a young driver, Lando Norris, and an experienced driver, Daniel Ricciardo, was supposed to be a sure-shot recipe for success. However, things turned out differently.

Does Toto Wolff want Daniel Ricciardo at Mercedes?

In Formula 1, your teammate is your biggest rival. You just cannot afford to lose consistently to your partner driving the same car. Lando Norris has outperformed his teammate race after race. The defeat must be even more difficult for Honey Badger to digest as Lando is much younger and much less experienced than him.

Now that his exit from the grid in 2023 is confirmed, Mercedes wanted to bring him in as their 3rd driver.

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Toto Wolff, as per Motorsport Total, lauded Ricciardo for his personality and years of experience. “We appreciate him as a great character, but we are not yet in a position to say who our third driver will be.” [Translated using Google]

“And he’s been around for a long time, knows these cars inside out. That can be an advantage. But I don’t want to spread any rumors, because we haven’t decided yet,” Toto continued.

The Mercedes boss confirmed Ricciardo is currently in contact with multiple teams. He said, “Daniel is talking to a few teams about a possible role, including Red Bull.”

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Daniel Ricciardo’s replacement explains the thought behind McLaren’s move

Australian driver Oscar Piastri will replace his fellow countryman at McLaren in 2023. While almost every team strives to have a combination of young and experienced in their lineup, McLaren has decided to take a different route altogether.

Oscar, while appearing on the PitStop podcast, explained, “They wanted to invest in youth. They’ve shown that through their previous years with people like Lando, like Lewis.”

Piastri continued, “So, I think it’s sort of been in the team’s spirit and mentality. I think it’s nice to have two young guys in there that can hopefully build the future and move forward with McLaren.”

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Keeping in mind his success in the junior formulas, do you think we would fare well against McLaren’s wunderkind, Lando Norris?