A Daniel Ricciardo return to Formula One: these are the options!

All season long, Daniel Ricciardo has been on the sidelines, yet the Australian still often knows the spotlight is on him. The subject is always the same: 'Will Ricciardo return to Formula 1 in 2024, and with which team?' At Red Bull Racing, where the eight-time Grand Prix winner is the third driver behind Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez, Ricciardo would prefer to get behind the wheel. But is that realistic, and what are his options for '24 anyway?

Red Bull Racing

The season started so strongly for Sergio Perez. In the first four Grands Prix, the Mexican took two wins, and he even dared to say he wanted a serious shot at the world title. Meanwhile, it looks like Perez will (again) have to acknowledge his superiority to Verstappen, who has taken a big lead over him. Indeed, even his second place in the championship is under considerable pressure.

With the best car in the field, Perez should be able to finish at least second in every race, but he does not. It fuels stories (again) that the Mexican is unsure of his seat, especially now that Red Bull has Ricciardo waiting in the wings. It is no secret that the Australian and Verstappen have formed a measured duo in the past, and only too happy Ricciardo would like to take a seat alongside the two-time champion again.

Ricciardo has been known to deliver in his Red Bull days. After all, he scored seven of his eight victories with the Austrian team. But the days when Ricciardo performed at the top level on a weekly basis are far behind us. After first a failed adventure at Renault (now Alpine), two difficult years at McLaren (despite a win at Monza) followed. McLaren's Ricciardo will not put team boss Christian Horner and advisor Helmut Marko back in the Red Bull any time soon, the Ricciardo from his first Red Bull period is clearly a reinforcement over Perez.

A lot will depend on Sergio Perez, who has an ongoing contract for 2024, in the near future. If the Mexican can pick himself up, there is probably no reason for Red Bull to push him aside. At the same time, it is up to Ricciardo to show, for example during the Pirelli test after the Silverstone Grand Prix, that he has recovered his old self. Should Perez still fail, he has at least shown Red Bull that he has his mojo back.

AlphaTauri

After his forced departure from McLaren, Ricciardo made it clear he had no desire to fight in the midfield or the rear. Should he return to Formula 1, it had to be with a team that was competing for prizes. AlphaTauri is clearly not that. Ricciardo is now reportedly open to a year with Red Bull Racing's sister team, the former Toro Rosso (for which the Australian already competed) anyway. It could be a bridging year, or so the thinking goes, as Perez's contract expires at the end of 2024 anyway. If Ricciardo has then worked wonders with AlphaTauri, he seems one of the logical candidates alongside Verstappen.

At AlphaTauri, Yuki Tsunoda is currently performing fine. The same cannot be said for his teammate Nyck de Vries. It is an open secret that De Vries needs to do better if he does not want to lose his seat. Liam Lawson is a candidate if the Dutchman leaves, but as a rookie, it is also uncertain whether he can hold his own in Formula 1. In principle, AlphaTauri should know Ricciardo can keep up, and on a good day is even capable of a stunt.

Mercedes

Lewis Hamilton has still not renewed his contract at Mercedes. Time and again, the Briton and his team boss Toto Wolff say it will all work out in the end, but more and more reports are also appearing (true or not) that negotiations are heading towards an impasse. At the moment, it seems obvious that Hamilton and Mercedes will work things out.

Should that not be the case, Mercedes will have a problem: all the top drivers are contracted until 2024, so a driver who can play second fiddle to the then-number-one George Russell will soon be found. Current reserve driver Mick Schumacher is mainly known for his ability to crash hard, a Ricciardo in form can race hard. Having the Australian as a bridge before some top performers (Leclerc, Sainz) enter the market in '25 is not an unrealistic thought.

Aston Martin

At Aston Martin, Fernando Alonso is not at all in question. The Spaniard works wonders with the green car. His teammate Lance Stroll does not. With the qualities of the Aston Martin, Stroll should be close to the podium every race, but he often struggles to reach Q3 already.

Of course, Lance is the son of team owner Lawrence. The latter helped buy Aston Martin in order to give Lance a place in Formula 1. At the same time, Stroll Senior is hugely ambitious. He wants to become a champion, in both drivers and constructors. The latter is not going to happen with the Lance Stroll of 2023. If Lawrence Stroll dares to make the tough decision to push his son aside, then Ricciardo is an ideal replacement: someone who knows what it is like to drive structurally in the points, even win races. In that case, with Alonso alongside him, Aston Martin would have a very solid driver duo, capable of a lot.

Alfa Romeo (Sauber)

For Sauber, the countdown has begun. Name sponsor Alfa Romeo will disappear after this season, the team will officially continue as an Audi works team from '26. In the meantime, the Swiss team could do with someone to help with this transition with their wealth of experience. Valtteri Bottas could be such a driver, but the Finn seems to prefer being on his bike these days. This season, the former Mercedes driver has been regularly driven around his ears by his teammate Zhou Guanyu, and the question is, how long is Sauber's patience with the veteran driver?

Bottas is currently driving at the level Ricciardo did at McLaren, so on the face of it, a driver change seems like a waste of time. On the other hand, Sauber knows what it currently has on Bottas (read: little), while the enforced break may have done Ricciardo good. Moreover, Ricciardo has always been more of a racer than Bottas, which makes him an interesting option for the Swiss.