Ex-Renault boss blasts Daniel Ricciardo for his 2020 move to McLaren, claims it was downright ‘selfish’

Daniel Ricciaardo drove for Renault during the 2018 and 2019 F1 season.

Ex-Renault boss blasts Daniel Ricciardo for his 2020 move to McLaren, claims it was downright ‘selfish’

Daniel Ricciardo (Via IMAGO)

Daniel Ricciardo, the former 8-time Grand Prix winner, has had quite a ride at the pinnacle of motor racing in the last few years. From being seen as a liability by McLaren to getting his mojo back in his comeback with AlphaTauri, he has seen major ups and downs. But all the circus around him started when he left Renault at the end of the 2020 campaign.

Since leaving Red Bull, Daniel Ricciardo was doing well for Renault but something switched in him when McLaren decided to pursue him ahead of the 2020 campaign. Then Renault(Alpine) boss, Cyril Abiteboul believes that the move on Ricciardo’s part was extremely selfish and was the wrong move. The Australian didn’t last long at McLaren as he exited the team in 2022 and joined Red Bull as a reserve driver, before returning to the driving seat with AlphaTauri.

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Abiteboul has recently talked about the drama that ensued back then and while sharing specific details with Soymotor, he made it clear that he to date holds a slight grudge against Ricciardo for the way he left Renault at the end of 2020.

He made his decision in April or May, when everyone was still confined. Nobody knew when we were going to return to the circuit, or if we were ever going to do it. It was a very early move, a bit selfish, since he based his decision on a season he had with us and it is no lie that he made a mistake.

Daniel Ricciardo wants to get back into the Red Bull setup

While Cyril Abiteboul has left no stone unturned in letting his frustrations known with Daniel Ricciardo for 2020, the latter after having a challenging stint with McLaren that saw him sit getting kicked out of the team, is now back in the F1 fold and wants to secure the second Red Bull seat as soon as possible.

Christian Horner and Daniel Ricciardo (Credits: Imago)
Christian Horner and Daniel Ricciardo (Credits: Imago)

Ricciardo has a deal in place with AlphaTauri for 2024 and his main purpose behind driving for them is to use it as a launching pad to get back into the Red Bull F1 team. There was a time in the sport when Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen were feared as an extremely potent racing duo.

Sergio Perez has managed to keep hold of his Red Bull seat for 2024 but who knows, if the Mexican cannot meet Red Bull’s expectations during the campaign, he might get shown the exit door. If this happens, Ricciardo will be the downright favorite to acquire the Red Bull seat alongside Verstappen.

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