Red Bull has confirmed that Daniel Ricciardo will hold reserve driver duties at select Formula 1 races in 2023.
Ricciardo has returned to Red Bull following a disappointing spell at McLaren, with the official announcement last month labelling him as its third driver.
Red Bull specified that the Australian would be carrying out marketing jobs as well as simulator work for the squad next year.
Liam Lawson holds the official role as the team’s reserve driver, as well as the back-up for Red Bull’s sister team AlphaTauri.
However, Lawson will race in Super Formula next year, with clashes occurring during the F1 rounds at Imola, Montreal, Mexico City.
Speaking to Speedcafe, Red Bull team boss Christian Horner didn’t specify exactly which grands prix Ricciardo would be attending – however he asserted that he will be a reserve for the races he is present at the track.
“Daniel will be attending some races where, obviously, he will be our reserve driver for those events,” Horner said.
“[He will] probably do a bit of tyre testing for us, not with the Pirelli programme that gets distributed around the teams.
“He’ll be doing some work in the simulator. So he’ll be doing all of those activities and then, of course, with the commercial demands that we have from the myriad of sponsors and partners that we have.
“Particularly with a much bigger presence in the US where Daniel is now predominantly based, with three grands prix there next year, he’s gonna have a busy agenda for the season ahead.”
Ricciardo spent five seasons racing for Red Bull before seeking a new adventure, a decision which ultimately hasn’t panned out in his favour.
The Australian has targeted a return to full-time F1 completion for the 2024 season – but after he was ousted by McLaren, Horner says it was an easy decision to pursue his former employee.
“We were surprised to see Daniel be out on the overall market,” he said.
“So for us, having grown up with Red Bull, having nurtured him since being a junior, it made sense for us to bring him back into the fold.
“[He’s a driver] with so much experience, at such a high profile, I think Daniel had fallen out of love a little bit with Formula 1. He’s had a couple of really tough seasons, particularly this year.
“For him to play a supporting role to the race drivers as our third driver, both here in the factory and at events with all commercial partners we have as one of the most recognisable faces currently in F1, for us – it made a lot of sense.
“Hopefully, in that process, Daniel will rediscover his passion for Formula 1, but we certainly have no plans to utilise him other than in that third driver role, combined with the commercial activities that he’ll be performing.”
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