Ricciardo would be ready in “ten minutes” if needed says Red Bull Racing boss Christian Horner. Red Bull’s reserve Formula 1 driver Daniel Ricciardo continues to train to stay fit and would be ready to replace Verstappen or Perez in a heartbeat, according to his boss.
Daniel Ricciardo would be able to get into a Red Bull car and drive in the blink of an eye if necessary, says team boss Christian Horner.
After leaving McLaren at the end of last year’s championship, Daniel Ricciardo began a sabbatical in F1 this season as the third driver in the Red Bull team, ready to replace one of the two starters, Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez, if necessary.
MORE F1 NEWS: FIA rule change criticised
Ricciardo ready in just “ten minutes”
When asked if Daniel Ricciardo would be able to jump into a single-seater at the last minute to replace one of the two starters, the Briton said, “I’d say he’d be ready in about ten minutes.”
“He’s fit, he’s kept himself fit, he’s healthy. He’s training hard and he’s ready to go if given the chance.”
“I don’t know what you’ve done to him because he’s a bit skinny [Horner throws in looking at McLaren CEO Zak Brown], but he looks healthier now.”
MORE F1: Baku race weekend up in the air
Confirmed Red Bull duties coming for Ricciardo
Horner also confirmed that Ricciardo will take part in “some testing” later in the year with Red Bull:
“He’ll do some testing for us later in the year and we’ll see how it goes for him.”
The Red Bull reserve driver is not expected to take part in any free practice sessions on race weekends. Daniel Ricciardo will concentrate primarily on his work in the simulator.
“From a driving point of view, the simulator will be the main thing I’ll be doing this year,” said Ricciardo on the sidelines of the Red Bull RB19 livery launch presentation in New York earlier this year.
FP1 in Melbourne, aka the most chaotic practice session ever?! 🤯😆#AusGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/IqG9O2o7cH
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 31, 2023
“There are also some events, so I’ll be doing shows throughout the year. After that it’s not confirmed, so I don’t know if it will happen, but I know there are tyre tests.”
“I would say that if I’m ever going to drive this year’s car, [tyre] testing is probably more likely than EL1. So there’s potentially some tyre testing in the middle of the year and that’s something that could be done, but mainly I’ll be in the simulator.”
Daniel Ricciardo won seven of his eight races during his time between 2014 and 2018 with Red Bull before two barren years at Renault and two difficult seasons with McLaren.
MORE F1 NEWS: Verstappen Australian GP weekend handicap
