Daniel Ricciardo has expressed that he is unsure whether his private outing with RB will lead to a mid-season step-up to Red Bull amid Sergio Perez’s Formula 1 woes.
Perez’s wretched streak continued in Belgium as he slipped from the front row to seventh in a race Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko described as a “complete collapse”.
Despite penning a new multi-term deal earlier this season, Perez’s dismal run has prompted rumours that he could vacate his drive as Red Bull evaluates his position.
Ricciardo is considered the likeliest candidate should a change be made due to his previous experience in the team alongside reigning F1 champion Max Verstappen.
Following a sluggish start to 2024, Ricciardo’s season has gathered momentum in recent races and he capitalised on George Russell’s disqualification to land a point.
The Australian is poised to participate in a filming day with RB this week with team-mate Yuki Tsunoda, reserve driver Liam Lawson and Red Bull Junior Ayumu Iwasa.
But while the showing has been tipped as a shootout to decide who might take Perez’s place, Ricciardo is uncertain whether it could deliver his dream Red Bull return.
“So 35, job interview!” he quipped. “Yeah, we’ll see. We were always planning to do a filming day. I might do a few extra laps. Will it have some weight or not? Let’s see.
“But I guess my approach is every time I’m going to get strapped in, I’ll try and do the best I can.
“So I won’t be in holiday mode just yet. And then yeah, we’ll see. See what happens.”
Ricciardo attained his reprieve with Red Bull’s sister squad 12 months ago when he posted impressive lap times in the champion’s all-conquering RB19 at Silverstone.
However, the eight-time race winner doesn’t sense that his latest chance to shine has as much riding on the outcome as that Pirelli test with the parent Red Bull team.
Asked whether he was viewing it as a potential audition to retrieve that Red Bull seat he vacated in 2018, Ricciardo replied: “I don’t know, honestly.
“Because last year when I drove the Red Bull, the current car after Silverstone, that was, let’s say, pretty legit.
“I was driving the current car and I knew if I could do something special, maybe then the call comes. So I would say that definitely felt a little bit more real.
“So yeah, that’s probably the best way I can answer it. So I’m not going to say no, this doesn’t. But that one, I was very aware that this could be something real here.”
Meanwhile, Ricciardo has admitted that he can understand Perez’s agitation regarding questions over his position, citing that he had the same experience at McLaren.
“Look, I get it,” he added. “It’s obviously… it can be a bit tiring. I’ve been there. I was about to say I’ve been there and it’s, yeah, it’s not always fun.”
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