Ricciardo replaces De Vries at AlphaTauri: 'Pleased to welcome him'

It was officially revealed on Tuesday afternoon that Nyck de Vries would not be allowed to finish his Formula 1 season at AlphaTauri. The Dutchman will be replaced by old friend of the team Daniel Ricciardo, who drove for the Italian team in 2012 and 2013 under the name Toro Rosso. Team boss Franz Tost is happy with the Australian's arrival.

De Vries did not get beyond ten races at AlphaTauri and did not manage to score points in any of them. Teammate Yuki Tsunoda did. Due to the Dutchman's disappointing performance, it has been decided to replace him. Ricciardo is the designated person to replace De Vries, returning to the F1 grid after a six-month absence.

"I’m very pleased to welcome Daniel back into the team. There’s no doubt about his driving skill, and he already knows many of us, so his integration will be easy and straight-forward. The team will also profit a lot from his experience, as he is an eight-time Formula 1 Grand Prix winner. I would like to thank Nyck for his valuable contribution during his time with Scuderia AlphaTauri, and I wish him all the best for the future," Tost said in an AlphaTauri press release.