Departure of De Vries and Vandoorne opens door for Ricciardo at Mercedes

Mercedes, with Nyck de Vries and Stoffel Vandoorne, are losing this season's test and reserve drivers. It opens the door for Daniel Ricciardo, but there is no sign of a deal yet.

Mercedes reserve drivers

For the 2022 season, De Vries and Vandoorne were Mercedes' test and reserve drivers. The German team also had Esteban Gutierrez on the payroll, but the team found out in 2020 that the Mexican no longer has a valid super licence. Since then, he has only worked as a development driver and is the team's ambassador.

To replace him, Vandoorne and De Vries were listed as the F1 team's reserve drivers from 2021. The Belgian and the Dutchman also drove for Mercedes' Formula E team and could combine that work. It even earned De Vries several tests in 2021 and 2022 and even a chance at AlphaTauri as a regular driver before 2023.

With that, Mercedes already lost one of their reserve drivers, but it was announced on Tuesday morning that Vandoorne will also leave the racing team. He will become the second reserve driver at Aston Martin alongside Felipe Drugovich. So Mercedes has a vacancy and Ricciardo has been linked to it for months.

Ricciardo to Mercedes?

Ricciardo leaves F1 at the end of 2022 and has already indicated he does not have a permanent seat for 2023. His main aim is to return in 2024, and preferably with a team that can win races. Thus, the Australian is said to be in talks with Mercedes, but Toto Wolff also revealed that Ricciardo is also discussing this option with Red Bull Racing.

Ricciardo would like to get himself into the spotlight as a test and reserve driver with a top team in order to secure another competitive seat. Mercedes seemed a logical spot with Lewis Hamilton's contract expiring at the end of 2023, but the Briton has already indicated he wants to talk to the team about a new, multi-year deal.

So the vacant spot at Mercedes means an opportunity for Ricciardo in 2023, and the fact that Mercedes is just letting Vandoorne walk may also mean that the alternative is already in place. With 230 Grands Prix behind his name, Ricciardo is an experienced driver and (in terms of experience) an upgrade over Vandoorne and De Vries.