Ricciardo addresses De Vries departure: 'Mature enough to understand'

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ricciardo press conference gp hungary thursday
20 July 2023 at 12:01
Last update 20 July 2023 at 12:45
  • Olly Darcy
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Daniel Ricciardo disappeared from the grid after a disappointing 2022 at McLaren, but six months later, the 34-year-old driver is back on track. He will finish this season in place of Nyck de Vries at AlphaTauri. Ricciardo is happy with his F1 return, although he also sympathises with De Vries, who was sacked from his seat in his first season in F1.

After his forced departure from McLaren, Ricciardo found shelter with his old love Red Bull as a test and reserve driver. The Australian impressed with his performance in the simulator and was allowed to complete a Pirelli tyre test in the RB19 after the British Grand Prix. After just a few laps, Helmut Marko knew enough: Ricciardo will finish the season in the AT04.

Ricciardo on De Vries' exit

For De Vries, it looks like the end of his F1 dream after just ten races. Ricciardo knows what it is like to be shown the door. "Nyck is also well into his twenties, and I think he is mature enough to understand the sport. As I know it myself, just looking at my last year," he told The Telegraph and others during a press event at the Hungaroring.

The eight-time Grand Prix winner (seven at Red Bull and one at McLaren) hopes that the 28-year-old Dutchman is not going to throw in the towel. In doing so, he also cites his own situation. "A year ago, I didn't think I would still be driving a Formula One car either, and now I'm sitting here. It's about how you deal with setbacks and how you get out of them. I wish Nyck all the best, and if I ever meet him on the Formula One grid again, I would love that."

Early driver change

Ricciardo steps in two races before the summer break, perhaps a somewhat odd time. After all, Yuki Tsunoda also indicated that he would have found it fairer if his departed teammate had been given a chance to prove himself until the summer break. Ricciardo commented: "The summer break might have been a slightly more logical time, but we all know that Red Bull can be quite unconventional."