Why Martin Brundle will be ‘slightly relieved’ if Daniel Ricciardo loses his RB seat

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Daniel Ricciardo’s 257th Formula 1 race start at the Singapore Grand Prix could well be his last. There are strong rumours that Liam Lawson will replace him from the US GP onwards.

The four-week break before the two season-ending triple-headers offer the team’s the last viable opportunity to change their driver line-ups in-season. And Red Bull seem keen to parachute Lawson in early to prepare him for a full debut in 2025.

Ricciardo is the fourth-most experienced driver on the grid after Fernando Alonso (394 races), Lewis Hamilton (349) and Sergio Perez (274). He entered the sport with backmarkers HRT back in 2011 before joining Toro Rosso (now RB) the following year.

After edging Jean-Eric Vergne during his two years at Faenza, Ricciardo earned a promotion to Red Bull alongside Sebastian Vettel. He scored three race wins in his first season, outperforming the four-time world champion.

After a brief partnership with Daniil Kvyat, Ricciardo linked up with Max Verstappen. He would add four more wins to his tally before his shock departure at the end of 2018.

He was arguably a closer match for the Dutchman than any of his other teammates in F1. But he seemed to lose confidence during his spell with McLaren in 2021 and 2022 and he’s struggled to recover his previous form since.

Martin Brundle says Daniel Ricciardo’s Formula 1 career has become ‘uncomfortable’

Ricciardo lost his McLaren seat to compatriot Oscar Piastri with a year of his contract still remaining. As Sky Sports F1 pundit Martin Brundle noted before FP1 at the Singapore Grand Prix, the Woking outfit paid him off so they could change their line-up.

He returned to Red Bull as a reserve driver for the first half of the 2023 season before Nyck de Vries lost his seat at AlphaTauri, opening up a spot next to Yuki Tsunoda. Ricciardo has shown flashes of brilliance since, perhaps most notably his P4 in the Miami Sprint, but largely underwhelmed.

Brundle has found it ‘uncomfortable’, even ‘undignified’, to watch Ricciardo’s apparent decline from his ‘world-class’ heights. Part of him is therefore willing the ‘pain’ to end.

“I’ll be slightly relieved when this pain is over for him, if I’m honest,” he said. “When the moment finally comes, down the road.

“McLaren chose to pay him not to race the car. It’s just been so uncomfortable and undignified in some respects. But we know he’s a world-class driver.”

Max Verstappen may have ‘let slip’ Red Bull’s plan for Daniel Ricciardo

During Thursday’s media day in Singapore, Ricciardo inevitably faced questions over his immediate future. He wasn’t in a position to deny that Lawson would be in the car in Austin.

Brundle’s colleague Ted Kravitz was ‘astonished’ by Ricciardo’s comments. He expected the 35-year-old to put the ‘internet story’ to bed but he’s now realised the prospect of a driver change is genuine.

Verstappen also discussed Ricciardo’s future in the pre-race press conference. David Croft thinks he accidentally ‘let slip’ the plan at Red Bull.

By speaking fondly about his career, he seemed to indicate that this would indeed be his final appearance. Confirmation is expected in the days after the race.