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Red Bull is prepared to wait for Daniel Ricciardo to make his decision about staying with the team beyond 2018. The energy drink company's premier F1 team has locked down Max Verstappen with a new contract until 2020, prompting some to think that Australian Ricciardo may now look for an alternative.
Indeed, Dr Helmut Marko, the Red Bull driver manager, confirmed that the 28-year-old is "on the market". But team boss Christian Horner sounds relaxed, saying that even if Ricciardo decides to leave, Red Bull's ability to pull Carlos Sainz back from the works Renault team is a "safety net".
Horner said of Ricciardo: "At 28, his next decision is a very important one. So he will take time to make it right. But we have also clearly told him that we want him on the team," Horner is quoted by Salzburger Nachrichten newspaper. "Even if the decision takes him six months, that's fine," he added. (GMM)
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Replies (4)
Login to replyDanimal5981
Posts: 579
I honestly don't see him move to Mercedes; they'll keep Bottas until they are confident enough to fit in Ocon. Red Bull is clearly betting on Verstappen. So either he replaces Raikkonen at Ferrari, Alonso at McLaren or makes a swap with Sainz if the Renault works team starts being competitive as well as reliable.
calle.itw
Posts: 8,527
Lets be real here: where else would he go?
ajpennypacker
Posts: 2,475
The situation at Red Bull is not bad yet. But if they get a more competitive car then we will probably start to see the cracks form at RB rallies around Verstappen. That being said, Ricciardo needs to get his act together, because Max has been outqualifying and outracing him lately. I'm not sure if it's a dip in form, or Max getting better. Either way, I still think that's the best pairing in F1 by a long shot. Everyone else has some clear #2 driver.
xoya
Posts: 583
I've read somewhete that Max has received a new version of the engine while Daniel hasn't. Can't really put my "hand into fire" on that being true, but it kind of makes sense.