McLaren paid Daniel Ricciardo $18 million in financial compensation after unceremonious exit

It is no secret that Daniel Ricciardo had a rough stint with McLaren. The Australian was unable to squeeze a performance out of the car and was miles behind his teammate, Lando Norris. Hence, at the end of the 2022 F1 season, him and McLaren parted ways.

However, the goodbye wasn't as simple since Daniel Ricciardo's contract with McLaren was till 2023. On the other hand, the British team were eager to sign Oscar Piastri, who rejected Alpine and debunked their announcement to give him a seat at the Woking-based outfit. This resulted in McLaren offering Daniel Ricciardo financial compensation for terminating his contract prematurely.

It was speculated that the total compensation figure to be paid to Ricciardo would be around $21 million, however, according to reports from RacingNews365, the agreed amount came down to $18 million. It is not yet confirmed on how and exactly when the Australian will be receiving the amount from McLaren.

As of now, Daniel Ricciardo has joined Red Bull as a third and simulator driver. Since he has driven for the Milton Keynes-based team back in 2018, it has been easier for him to join them as a reserve driver. Moreover, the Australian is an excellent asset apart from being a driver since he brings a massive fanbase with him and could also help Red Bull in their promotional videos and advertisements.

However, he has shown tremendous interest and passion for the sport and would like to return to the Formula 1 grid as soon as possible. Since Ricciardo moved to Red Bull as a third driver, there have been several talks in the F1 sphere that the 8-time Grand Prix winner could replace Sergio Perez in the future. Of course, nothing can be said for sure.

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Daniel Ricciardo looking forward to working on the Red Bull simulator

Daniel Ricciardo recently spoke about how he is 'curious' to see how the Red Bull cars have changed since he left the team. Even though the Australian left the team after 2018, he is eager to see how the team has developed their car since then and what has changed. Moreover, he simply wants to test himself on their simulator as well. Speaking on the Beyond the Grid podcast, Ricciardo said:

"Going back to Red Bull, I think there is, of course, an element of me which is curious in terms of just jumping on the sim and seeing how I do, even just for myself. [It is] a car that, of course, it’s changed in the last four years, but a car that obviously I knew well [and] had a lot of success with."

This statement from Daniel Ricciardo could have fueled the debate of him stealing the seat from Sergio Perez if he is unable to perform in the future. However, Ricciardo simply stated how he wanted to test himself in the simulator and observe how much has changed.