After his name had not sounded very strong for any of the available seats in recent weeks, the confirmation of the signing of Pierre Gasly by Alpine and Nyck De Vries by AlphaTauri made Ricciardo acknowledge for the first time that he will not be on the grid of the highest category next season.
There are still two seats up in the air, at Williams and Haas, but Logan Sargeant is expected to fill the former, provided he gets the super license in Abu Dhabi, while Nico Hulkenberg and Antonio Giovinazzi are the two main contenders for the latter, although in recent days it seems that Mick Schumacher has taken some step forward to sign his renewal.
Several weeks ago, Ricciardo acknowledged the possibility of taking a gap year and said he would study a possible role as a reserve driver with a higher-level team that would allow him to stay close to the series.
However, it is understood that he will not ultimately join Mercedes, which was the team that sounded the most for it, despite the fact that both parties have held talks.
“I was aware of the Gasly news,” Daniel Ricciardo said when asked if the announcement had in any way affected his hopes and future.
“I knew they were talking, and I knew they were very interested in Pierre. Let’s just say he was prepared for the announcement, and no wonder.”
“We were trying to, let’s say, wait and see what happened with that and figure out what was next. But I think the reality now is that I won’t be on the grid in 2023,” he admitted.
“I think right now I just have to get ready for 2024. I think there could be some good opportunities by then. So that’s where I have my sights set right now.”
Asked by Motorsport.com if he wanted to use 2023 to try out other series like NASCAR, Ricciardo said he wants to stay focused on F1, even if he’s not racing.
“Really, the plan is still to be in F1. I would say this is like stopping for a moment, that’s the way I see it, as far as my F1 career is concerned. My intention is 2024.”
“Sure, I could look at some opportunities to maybe do some different races, but if I feel like that would take me off track then it’s not really what I’m looking for right now, but yeah, it could be a lot of fun and great to race somewhere else. “.
“But the truth is that mentally I’m not in that moment. I’m still very involved here, and I think that spending a little time without a seat will probably do me good.”
“So I’m going to use 2023 for that, rather than looking for something else just to stay active in a different series. I would say, quite convincingly, that’s not going to happen,” concluded the veteran Australian driver.
