Daniel Ricciardo returning to F1 this summer

Daniel Ricciardo finally has a date to put his helmet back on. The man with 8 Grand Prix victories Formula 1 will benefit from at least one testing session, on the fast Silverstone track in July 2023, as he revealed to ESPN on the sidelines of the Miami Grand Prix (Florida).

The Australian pilot, thanked by McLaren at the end of a disappointing 2022 season, found refuge with Red Bull Racing as a reservist and test pilot. “I have already been in the factory simulator, and I will drive the RB19 in July, after the Silverstone race (Great Britain, GP scheduled for July 9. Editor’s note), lduring a test (tyres) Pirelli », revealed the former pilot Renault.

"Then maybe I'll do another one after the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, in September. It's a few months [and] I'll be able to feel what it's like to drive an F1 car. » Indeed, since the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at the end of November 2022, Daniel Ricciardo has no longer driven car currently in private testing.

As the Australian admits, the time is starting to get long! “ I'm looking forward to driving a fast car, but also one that might be familiar to me – it's a bit familiar in the simulator anyway. But I'm just excited about the idea of ​​driving again and trying to remind a team that I've had a lot of success with that I can still put in a fast lap. »

Daniel Ricciardo is taking advantage of a lighter schedule to diversify his hobbies and take on new personal challenges, mostly sporting ones. “I check a few boxes, because if I come back on the grid next year, and I'm on the grid for the next five years, for example, there may be things that I won't have anymore. opportunity to do,” including the New York marathon.

« A few friends ran it last year and I was like, 'That looks cool.' There are those kinds of things that I think about that I obviously wouldn't have the opportunity to do in the regular season, so I want to do things like that this year. »

Because yes, Daniel Ricciardo has not definitively drawn the line on a starting position in F1 in 2024! “For now, I want to get back on the starting grid next year. I feel like there is definitely unfinished business. I'm staying in the game, preparing and everything else. »

In the meantime, Daniel Ricciardo will have the chance to drive an ex-Red Bull RB7Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber on the fearsome Nordschleife, the northern loop of the Nürburgring, as part of a festival in September 2023.

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