in 2016 The Mexican driver Sergio Perez was caught in a lot of hassle in the 2023 season. He was seen struggling with the car for quite some time. The driver had a hard time qualifying in the top 10 at the start of the season, whereas his teammate Max Verstappen was dominating the sport. The Dutch driver was winning trophies left and right with the rocketship Red Bull had built.
Perez had difficulty making It work for the Red Bull racing team. Many believed the car was made to suit the driving style of Max and Checo follows a different style. Due to this change, the Mexican was not able to get the best out of the car. Due to his inefficiency in performance, he was also hit with racist remarks from Helmut Marko.
🚨 As per @lawrobarretto Daniel Ricciardo is the favoured option to replace Checo mid-season in 2024 or at the end of 2024 if required
[@F1] pic.twitter.com/qOtqFRGYI9
— RBR Daily (@RBR_Daily) September 30, 2023
By the end of the season, there were speculations of Perez being replaced. There were rumors of Red Bull looking for a new second driver to pair with Verstappen by mid-2024.
Daniel Ricciardo might join Max Verstappen
Daniel Ricciardo is currently racing for Red Bull’s second team Visa CashApp RB (previously known as AlphaTauri). He is the third driver for Red Bull, Max and Ricciardo used to be teammates from 2016 till 2019. Since 2021 Sergio Perez has been the second driver for Red Bull.
Recently Sky Sports uploaded a Q&A video with Ted Kravitz. Kravitz is a pit reporter for F1 in Sky Sports, popular for his deep analysis and insights. The reporter spoke about how Red Bull can benefit from paring Ricciardo with Verstappen.
Ted Kravitz on Daniel: “I think he’s going to have a very good season. I think he’s going be on the podium at least once in that RB. I think he’s going to score a lot of points and help move that team forward.
I still think somewhere deep in Red Bull, the plan is for Danny Ric… pic.twitter.com/ZbLJxDr4IG
— meredith (@mereeedithh) February 27, 2024
Ted Kravitz said, “I think he’s going to have a very good season. I think he’s going be on the podium at least once in that RB. I think he’s going to score a lot of points and help move that team forward“, he added, “I still think somewhere deep in Red Bull, the plan is for Danny Ricciardo“.
Kravitz believes Red Bull has plans to take the team forward using Daniel Ricciardo. Racing for Red Bull’s second team the Australian driver showed he still has his skills in the 2023 season.