Daniel Ricciardo sees 'potential positives' in moving to Red Bull reserve driver role

Daniel Ricciardo believes there are positives in moving back to Red Bull and felt that the familiarity with the Austrian team made it the right choice. The Australian, who lost his drive at McLaren and will not feature on the 2023 grid, felt that Red Bull's current form and performance helped him shape the decision.

Asked by Sportskeeda in Abu Dhabi about his choice to move to Red Bull, the Australian replied:

“Yeah, I think there was, there's a lot of kind of potential positives but I don't know, I don't really know how we'll stand to that. I don’t know how else to answer that. Yeah, could be good, we'll see, I don't know, they are doing well, yeah, I don't know.”

Daniel Ricciardo has finally been confirmed as the third driver at Red Bull, but when he spoke to Sportskeeda in Abu Dhabi, the decision was still pending and was only confirmed by Helmut Marko to Sky Sports Germany.

Although Daniel Ricciardo is unsure whether his former team are the right option for him when it comes to a development driver or a third driver’s role, their top form and performance made it the better option.

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Daniel Ricciardo believes his familiarity with Red Bull made it easier to choose them for 2023

The outgoing McLaren driver joked that money was definitely not a deciding factor while choosing Red Bull as an option, but the familiarity with the team played a role. Daniel Ricciardo was also linked with Mercedes and admitted to having talks with them.

According to Motorsport Network, the Australian received a call from Mercedes but was not interested in being their reserve driver or driving with a small team like Haas. The 33-year-old driver felt that the familiar surroundings at Red Bull are the reason why he would prefer that atmosphere to take a break and rebuild his confidence as he takes a hiatus from the sport.

Outlining the reasons for choosing Red Bull as an option instead of Mercedes, Daniel Ricciardo said:

“Definitely not that (money). I am past all that nonsense, all that mumbo jumbo. I don’t know probably a bit of timing as well. Yeah that’s probably the main thing. Well not the main thing but probably there is a bit with the familiarity which swayed me a little bit towards Red Bull. I’ve also been jumping around a bit in the last few years, so going back to something familiar might be a little, I won’t say easy but in a way perhaps easier.”

On being asked why he did not choose Mercedes or even Haas, Daniel Ricciardo replied:

"Well that I wasn’t interested. Come on they are not being nice . I knew I wanted time off from a race seat and competition, it’s just been tiring the last couple of years. It was pretty clear to me shortly after summer break that was is wanted I wanted and what was best for me."

"Then I was like ok what is the next best thing and it was sorted out and I wanted to be involved (in F1) to some degree. Obviously if I could be involved with a top team that is obviously the preference. So I had in-depth conversations with both (Mercedes and Red Bull) and it is getting a lot closer now with Red Bull."

According to the newly confirmed Red Bull reserve driver, a race seat was not an option for 2023 as he had decided that he needed a break from the sport. After his short stint with Renault and underwhelming performances with McLaren, Daniel Ricciardo felt that a return to Red Bull while they were in top form is the best move for 2023.

With friction between Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez as seen in the 2022 F1 Brazilian GP, it is being speculated that Daniel Ricciardo is an insurance policy in case Red Bull's current driver dynamic goes wrong in the future.