'De Vries could join battle for Red Bull seat alongside Verstappen'

Daniel Ricciardo will no doubt be hoping to take Sergio Perez's spot at Red Bull Racing, but according to Sky Sports analyst Karun Chandhok, Ricciardo should also look behind him. Nyck de Vries could pass the Australian after a good season.

Chandhok makes an interesting prediction on Sky Sports F1 that could provide a real spectacle for Dutch F1 fans. Namely, the Brit thinks that as Red Bull's third driver, Ricciardo will no longer claim a permanent seat with the team. Instead, he will have to watch out that he is not overtaken by Dutchman De Vries for a claim after this season.

'De Vries could fight for Red Bull spot after good season'

On the spot in the shadow of two-time world champion Max Verstappen, Chandhok says: "I don't think Daniel [Ricciardo] is a factor. I think that if De Vries has a good season, he is putting himself in the queue ahead of Daniel. Just the rumblings coming out of the Red Bull camp, they rate him very highly in testing so far."

Perez currently sits in the seat next to Verstappen and will not have much to fear from Ricciardo, according to the analyst. The Mexican will have to be careful though and do well in 2023: "The reality is there are probably only going to be 3-4 weekends a year where Checo is a true threat to Max. It's not week in week out. If Checo is smart, which we know he is, he will realise if he plays the team game and plays nice, 'I can get an extension'. " Should Perez disappoint in 2023 and De Vries shine, a swap is easily made according to Chandhok.