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Daniel Ricciardo finds himself in a worrying situation this season. The Australian has had his contract with McLaren cut short by a year following his inability to produce worthy performances. What is even more alarming, however, is his helplessness in finding a seat for the 2023 F1 season.
Ricciardo is sitting at a crossroads right now. On the current grid, there is a seat available at Alpine, arguably one at Haas, and then one each at Alfa Romeo and Williams. Regardless, none of these seats have the McLaren driver as the frontrunner. Meanwhile, he has claimed that a year on the sidelines might be a good thing for him as he angles towards the reserve driver role at Mercedes.
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The Australian's drop in performances has coincided with his move to McLaren. He seems to have completely lost his confidence and become a shadow of himself. Any team principal willing to take a punt can do so for Ricciardo and hope he can gain confidence in the new surroundings.
Alpine, who are looking for an experienced driver, or Haas, or Alfa Romeo Sauber, could give Ricciardo a shot because he surely has the talent to make it work. The silly season, however, has not shown that. Teams are reluctant to even mention his name. In our view, this has to do with one crucial aspect of Daniel Ricciardo's career where his past actions have started to come back and haunt him.
The chapter at Renault
The year was 2020! The F1 world was trying to figure out a way to deal with the pandemic. A make-shift F1 calendar was prepared for the year with the season held primarily in Europe. Just before racing could begin, the silly season kicked off. It started with Ferrari parting ways with Sebastian Vettel, with Carlos Sainz filling that vacancy and leaving a slot open at McLaren.
This was where Renault received its biggest shock. Daniel Ricciardo, who was about to begin his second season with the Enstone-based team, decided that he wanted to move to McLaren.
This was a shock for then-team principal Cyril Abiteboul. Renault had broken its bank to ensure Ricciardo's services. The association was supposed to be long-term as well. The Australian, however, gave the French outfit possibly the most public black eye as it did not even have a chance to showcase its potential properly.
The Australian saw out the year with Renault in 2020, scored a couple of podiums, and then joined McLaren for the 2021 F1 season.
Daniel Ricciardo's sudden divorce from Red Bull
It was somewhat shockingly similar to how Daniel Ricciardo decided to leave Red Bull after the 2018 F1 season. The Australian had been part of the senior team for almost five years by then. He had also been the lead driver since Sebastian Vettel's departure after the 2015 F1 season.
The 2018 F1 season was one where Ricciardo's teammate Max Verstappen stopped making errors. He had turned from a teenage prodigy into a fast and consistent performer. Ricciardo was also unhappy at how Red Bull handled the accident between him and Verstappen in Baku.
The Australian saw a glimmer of hope in going for Renault. He thought he could emulate what Lewis Hamilton did with his move to Mercedes from McLaren. It all somewhat made sense, except for the way Ricciardo left Red Bull.
His move from Red Bull was somewhat unexpected, catching both Christian Horner and Helmut Marko off-guard. Red Bull wanted to keep Ricciardo and the team considered him an asset, but he chose not to continue.
Biggest impediment to Daniel Ricciardo securing his future
Apart from the paddock experts, team principals also admit that Daniel Ricciardo could prove to be an asset. Christian Horner recently said on the Beyond the Grid podcast that if he was the Alpine team principal, he would have hired Ricciardo.
So why are teams not going after the Australian? The major reason behind that has been Ricciardo's lack of loyalty when switching teams. His move from Red Bull to Renault is still forgivable because apparently, he had to think a lot before making the decision. He was also looking at a dynamic where the team had started to lean towards Max Verstappen.
In the case of the move from Renault to McLaren, it's safe to say that Ricciardo arguably jumped the gun. While McLaren had been the midfield leader since the 2019 F1 season, Renault had not been too far behind. The move was impetuous for sure, but arguably in bad faith, as it hurt the team on a public platform.
It is this very hurt that has forced teams like Alpine, and even Alfa Romeo, to not look seriously at Daniel Ricciardo as a possible option. Alpine, already recovering from a lack of loyalty episode with Oscar Piastri, has started to put a value on this. While the Australian could be the best bit for the team, Alpine does not want to give that relationship another go.
Alfa Romeo Sauber is a long-term project and even Valtteri Bottas has admitted that. Ricciardo could be a good catch for the team. The problem, however, is Ricciardo's trigger-happy image. The team would be happy with a long-term relationship with the Australian but it cannot be certain that he would be willing to reciprocate.
Since the 2018 F1 season, Daniel Ricciardo has moved multiple teams and done that in an almost knee-jerk fashion. The lack of loyalty to a team like Renault that invested heavily in him is one of the reasons why the Australian cannot find a seat on the grid for the 2023 F1 season.
