Christian Horner has ruled out changing Red Bull’s driver line-up for 2024 despite Daniel Ricciardo‘s move to AlphaTauri and Sergio Perez‘s struggles alongside team-mate Max Verstappen.
Perez trails Verstappen by 99 points in the Formula 1 driver standings and has not made a Q3 appearance since the 2023 Miami Grand Prix in May. The performance has seen Perez’s second place spot in the championship come under threat from Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton.
“Our drivers are going to be Max and Checo again next year,” Horner said to the F1 Nation podcast. but it’s always good to have reserve talent.
“I think Daniel sees AlphaTauri as his golden ticket and wants to fight for the Red Bull seat in 2025. By going to AlphaTauri, he sees it as the best way to present his candidacy for 2025.”
Ricciardo to Red Bull?
Red Bull didn’t recognise Ricciardo‘s driving habits in the simulator when he returend to the Milton Keynes-based team in December 2022.
But, Horner revealed he has improved session by session and set competitive times in a Pirelli tyre test following the 2023 British GP.
If he performs well at AlphaTauri, he will almost certainly retain his seat for 2024 at the very least and perhaps find a way back to Red Bull.
Red Bull’s cost cap penalty has the potential to bite hard, and if their pace advantage disappears in 2024, they will need two fast and consistent drivers.
Where is the next F1 2023 race?
With the F1 circus finished at Silverstone, we move on to the 2023 Hungarian Grand Prix which will be held at the Hungaroring, Budapest over the weekend of July 21-23.
