Visa Cash App RB team principal Laurent Mekies has now made an ‘uncomfortable’ admission about Daniel Ricciardo whilst debating his future at the Formula 1 team.
Mekies is enjoying his first year at the helm of the Faenza squad after replacing Franz Tost in charge. RB have also emerged as one of the top midfield teams in 2024 but have largely had to rely on Yuki Tsunoda. While Ricciardo has claimed five points this season, Tsunoda has 19.
Ricciardo has also only finished one event in the points after securing fourth place in the F1 Sprint at the Miami GP. Tsunoda has so far ended five Grand Prix inside the top 10 and took a point in the Sprint in Florida. Ricciardo’s best Grand Prix finishes this year have been P12s.
Visa Cash App RB will consider more than Daniel Ricciardo’s form when deciding on 2025
Tsunoda is comprehensively dominating Ricciardo in the Visa Cash App RB garage in several head-to-head categories. As well as for points, the 24-year-old is beating the 34-year-old in Grand Prix results 6-2, in qualifying 7-1 and for their best finishing position with P7 over P12.
Failing to qualify higher than P9 for a Grand Prix through the first eight rounds could create questions regarding Ricciardo’s future at RB, too. The Australian is only under contract with the Faenza outfit for 2024. But Red Bull have Ricciardo signed up to a long-term agreement.
READ MORE: F1 2024 teammate head-to-head battles including race, Sprint and qualifying
A seat elsewhere on the grid may also be hard to come by amid Riccardo’s ‘frustrating’ lack of consistency in qualifying. But team principal Mekies has now clarified that while his year started ‘uncomfortably’, RB will look at all that Ricciardo adds when they asses his contract.
He told PlanetF1: “In the context of the projects, where the team needs to go and helping [to] identify the gaps, it hugely helps to have somebody like Daniel who won eight races, has been at a few teams and knows where the board can be and where the board needs to go.
“So, his input into the team has been massive. So, even when in the first couple of races the performance was in the uncomfortable zone, you were still bringing a massive amount of value to the team.”
Daniel Ricciardo still holds out hope for a return to Red Bull
Ricciardo may have to hope that Mekies and Visa Cash App RB believe his worth beyond his results merits a contract for the 2025 F1 season. The Perth native might also have to accept that they are the best team he can join. But Ricciardo still holds out hope for a Red Bull seat.
Edd Straw of The Race has reported that a drive with Red Bull could be his ‘all or nothing’ in 2025 as Williams and Alpine are ‘not interested’ in Ricciardo. He remains hopeful of heading back to Milton Keynes to replace Sergio Perez next year or could consider leaving Formula 1.
READ MORE: Every Formula 1 team’s confirmed driver line-ups for the 2025 season
Ricciardo walked away from Red Bull at the end of 2018 before having two years at Renault and two campaigns for McLaren. But the eight-time Grand Prix winner and three-time pole position ace has so far only added the 2021 Italian GP to his win tally since leaving Red Bull.
The post ‘Where the team needs to go’: Mekies makes ‘uncomfortable’ Ricciardo claim discussing RB future appeared first on F1 Oversteer.