Ricciardo's future discussed "during the summer break", a final deadline for the Australian?

En Formula 1, things can change very quickly and the truth of the day before is not necessarily that of the next day. This is all the more true when it concerns the clan Red Bull. The case Daniel Ricciardo is a perfect example. Since the start of the season, the discourse has continued to change regarding the Australian.

Criticized at the start of the season for his repeated poor performances, to the point that Helmut Marko allegedly imposed an ultimatum on him from the first Grands Prix, it seemed that the “Honey Badger” was still going to keep his seat in 2025 after Peter Bayer's statements in Monaco in this direction. With the road blocked at the parent team following the extension of Sergio Pérez, everything led to believe that there would be a status quo in the two Red Bull teams... but Helmut Marko, still him, came to call these near-certainties into question at the start of the week.

Marko wants to place Lawson…

« Shareholders (from Red Bull) made it clear that this was a youth team and we had to act accordingly, he confided to the Austrian daily Kleine Zeitung. The aim was for Daniel Ricciardo to be considered for a return to Red Bull thanks to outstanding performances. This place now belongs to Sergio Perez, so this plan is no longer relevant. We will soon have to call on a young pilot. It would then be Liam Lawson"

So who to believe? Who will be the teammate of Yuki tsunoda in 2025? Daniel Ricciardo or Liam Lawson? At Racing Bulls, we prefer to delay Helmut Marko's comments and take the time to think.

“[Daniel Ricciardo] definitely helped us a lot. Last year, when he joined the team, he brought a whole new energy to the team and he was very helpful in supporting Yuki [Tsunoda], who very recently said that 'he continued to learn from Daniel, underlines Peter Bayer, CEO of Racing Bulls. Developing drivers is part of our job and it is also a mission of the shareholders. This is what we are doing now. »

“But (…) it will of course depend on performance. We're fortunate to have a few options with the junior program, but we're also in no rush to make a decision for next year's crew. We confirmed Yuki, which was very important for us. Honestly, as you can see, we are currently focused on the car and will chat quietly during the summer break. »

…but Ricciardo is defended by Horner

Highly appreciated by Christian Horner, Daniel Ricciardo was once again supported by his former boss at Red Bull. A year after the decisive moment of private testing at Silverstone – which precipitated the Australian's return to Formula 1 in place of Nyck de Vries – the British leader believes that the eight-time Grand Prix winner still has great remains and great things to offer in the discipline.

“By his own admission, the first part of the season didn't go as planned, but he started to show signs of the old Daniel, underlines Christian Horner. We saw it in Miami, in Montreal. And obviously, [the decision will depend] on Peter [Bayer] and Laurent [Mekies]. They work closely with him. But in Formula 1, there is always pressure. He knows it better than anyone, and especially at Red Bull, there is always pressure for any seat. Daniel is fully aware of this. »

With a Liam Lawson “ready to join the team” Racing Bulls, in the words of Peter Bayer, Daniel Ricciardo will be scrutinized very closely during the next meetings. With four Grands Prix remaining before the summer break (Austria, Great Britain, Hungary, Belgium), will the Australian have time to turn things around and convince Red Bull to keep him at RB in 2025? ? When we know Helmut Marko's very limited patience, how can we not imagine that the decision has not ultimately already been made...

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