Official: Daniel Ricciardo to AlphaTauri

Daniel Ricciardo is returning to Formula 1! The Australian replaces the sacked Nyck de Vries at AlphaTauri, the team confirms.

The public favourite's sabbatical has come to an end. After a dramatic period at McLaren, Ricciardo decided to put his steering wheel aside for a while, hoping a new opportunity would one day come again. His time at McLaren was brutal to the happy Australian. The eight-time race winner was driven home weekly by teammate Lando Norris and his beloved smile disappeared.

Ricciardo decided to go back to where it all started, at Red Bull. As a test and reserve driver, he found his joy in car racing again and was of great value in the simulator. At Red Bull, he reached seven wins until he left for Renault. Before Ricciardo joined alongside Sebastian Vettel at the Austrians, he was a driver at sister team Toro Rosso, where he will now return.

The Telegraaf earlier wrote that the newly-former AlphaTauri driver may prove himself for a possible return at Red Bull. Should the 34-year-old Ricciardo still have the qualities of yesteryear, he could be an option for the Austrian racing stable's future. First, the Australian will have to prove he is faster than the younger Yuki Tsunoda. In any case, the pressure will be on Red Bull driver Sergio Perez, who has failed to reach Q3 for five races in a row now.