Fan-Favorite F1 Driver Daniel Ricciardo to Return to Grid for Rest of 2023 Season
Daniel Ricciardo is back.
The charismatic, eight-time Formula One race-winner is poised to return to the grid for the first time since last season in less than two weeks time at the Hungarian Grand Prix. The Red Bull reserve driver will join AlphaTauri on loan, replacing Nyck de Vries for the remainder of the 2023 season.
“I am stoked to be back on track with the Red Bull family!” Ricciardo said in a statement Tuesday.
"I’m very pleased to welcome Daniel back into the team,” Franz Tost, AlphaTauri Team Principal, added. “There’s no doubt about his driving skills, 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."
AlphaTauri has struggled this season, scoring just two points in the Constructors Championship which places them in last through 10 races. In particular, de Vries has labored through his first full-time year in F1, having never finished better than 12th in his starts.
Ricciardo, 34, boasts an illustrious career in F1, having won eight races and 32 finishes on the podium dating back to 2014. The Australian driver, who quickly established himself as a fan favorite on Netflix’s Drive to Survive, began his career with Toro Rosso before getting promoted to Red Bull. He won seven races with Red Bull but left in 2019 for a two-year stint with Renault.
Unfortunately for Ricciardo, an underwhelming stretch with McLaren in 2021 and ‘22 left him without a spot on the grid this season. He signed on as Red Bull’s third driver behind Max Verstappen and Sergio Pérez, but will now get a chance of his own once again at AlphaTauri.
Ricciardo will return to action for the first time in 2023 at the Hungarian Grand Prix, where he won his second-ever F1 race, on Sunday, July 23.