Ricciardo as reserve driver at Mercedes? 'There is some logic to that'

Damon Hill does not think a role as a reserve driver at a top Formula 1 team is a bad choice for Daniel Ricciardo. The information involved in such a role could potentially be useful for the Australian's future in the sport.

Ricciardo does not yet have a confirmed seat for 2023. It is starting to look more and more like the Australian will not be seen full time in F1 next year, as the teams with free seats for 2023 seem to have other candidates in mind.

According to the latest reports, there is a good chance we could see Nyck de Vries driving at AlphaTauri next year, making Pierre Gasly's move to Alpine possible. Williams is said to be interested in junior Logan Sargeant, while Haas is still unsure whether Mick Schumacher will be allowed to stay with the team. Among others, the names of Nico Hulkenberg and Antonio Giovinazzi have already been mentioned. Finally, Alfa Romeo seems to be satisfied with the performance of Guanyu Zhou.

Ricciardo as reserve driver?

Still, we may see Ricciardo without an F1 seat in the sport next season after all. Rumours are circulating that link the Australian with a role as a reserve driver at Mercedes. Ricciardo himself is open to several possibilities, but the McLaren driver also does not rule out taking a year off before returning in 2024.

Former F1 driver Hill does think it is a logical choice for Ricciardo to become a reserve driver at a top team. "I think there is some logic to that. If you’re at least with a top team, even if you’re in the wings and waiting for the right opportunity, you will have information that is useful to another team perhaps, potentially", Hill says on Sky Sports.