Daniel Ricciardo claims AlphaTauri is ‘no longer a junior team’ of Red Bull

Daniel Ricciardo has high hopes for AlphaTauri in 2024.

Daniel Ricciardo claims AlphaTauri is ‘no longer a junior team’ of Red Bull

Max Verstappen and Daniel Riccardo (Via IMAGO)

Daniel Ricciardo, the former eight-time Grand Prix winner, drove for AlphaTauri on off an on basis during the 2023 F1 season. He broke his right wrist during the Dutch GP weekend and after a long recovery process, he completed in the final few rounds of this year’s campaign.

Daniel Ricciardo signed a new deal with AlphaTauri for 2024 during the Japanese GP and ahead of next year, he has made it known that the Faenza-based team is no longer Red Bull’s junior team. Ricciardo has high hopes for AlphaTauri during the 2024 Formula 1 season.

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AlphaTauri’s main purpose since its inception has been to supply proper drivers to the Red Bull F1 team. While this remains to be their goal, Ricciardo has a few plans for AlphaTauri and while talking about it recently, he as reported by Motorsport, made it clear that he is very optimistic regarding his team’s chances in 2024.

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I feel like this is no longer a junior team. And I think, with a lot of plans for next year, hopefully, we can prove it on the track and get more points, like in the last few races. I feel like for me there's a lot of things that are falling back into place and it's really exciting.

Daniel Ricciardo sees his AlphaTauri stint as a launching pad toward Red Bull

While Daniel Ricciardo has backed his current team to do wonders during the 2024 F1 season, at the end of the day, he is looking at his current stint as a launching pad toward the coveted Red Bull F1 seat. The second seat on the Milton Keynes-based outfit will become available at the end of next year.

Christian Horner and Daniel Ricciardo
Christian Horner and Daniel Ricciardo (Via IMAGO)

Max Verstappen is contracted until the end of 2028 but Sergio Perez‘s time will run out at the end of next year. If he is not able to sign a contract extension, there is every chance that Daniel Ricciardo will be offered that seat, especially considering, that he has previously won several races with them.

Keeping in view everything that has been discussed above, the 2024 F1 season will be an immensely crucial one for Daniel Ricciardo and Sergio Perez. They both have a plethora of experience when it comes to the pinnacle of motor racing and thus, it would be fascinating to see who would race for Red Bull in 2025.

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