Daniel Ricciardo has confirmed he will remain at Red Bull Racing until at least the end of the 2018 Formula 1 season.
The Australian recently admitted he wouldn’t turn down a Ferrari drive if it was offered to him and has been linked to a move to the Italian team.
But now the three-time F1 race winner has committed his future in the series to Red Bull until 2018, which is when his current contract with the team comes to an end.
When asked in Thursday’s FIA press conference at the Red Bull Ring in Austria if he will be staying at Red Bull for the next two seasons, he replied: “Yeah, yeah.”
He didn't give away any further details, but said he feels Red Bull is the best place for him to challenge Mercedes in the near future.
“We want to win,” he explained. “This year is going to be tough for a world title but obviously where we are this year is where we are.
“You can’t do anything about that now. But looking ahead to next year and spending time with the team and seeing what’s ahead I think it’s the best place to be to try to challenge Mercedes, so that’s where it stems from.”
Max Verstappen has also secured his place at Red Bull until 2018. Ricciardo was asked how he expects his relationship to evolve with his team-mate. He replied: “It’s hard to predict what’s going to happen in the long run.
“I can obviously speak for the first few races and it’s been good. Max came in and set a bit of a tone in Barcelona. That was obviously a pretty crazy weekend and I think since then it’s been good.
“In a way we’ve thrived off the new challenge, the new rivalry, so hopefully it can keep pushing the team in the right direction.”
