Formula 1: Why is Daniel Ricciardo replacing De Vries at AlphaTauri?
After struggling in an uncompetitive car all season, Nyck De Vries is replaced at AlphaTauri by popular Australian Daniel Ricciardo.
What a difference a year makes. Daniel Ricciardo unceremoniously left McLaren after struggling for form before returning as a humble reserve driver for Red Bull. Nyck De Vries had a spectacular showing for Williams at Monza which won him the top seat for AlphaTauri.
Move forward to 2023 and AlphaTauri has had a sub-par year, with an admittedly uncompetitive car and a driver in De Vries who can’t seem to squeeze the best out of it. Finishing with only two points so far this season and both of those from their second driver Yuki Tsunoda, the team has made a change.
Effective immediately, De Vries is out and the popular Australian Ricciardo is in.
“I am stoked to be back on track with the Red Bull family!” says Ricciardo. AlphaTauri Team Principal, Franz Tost said, “I’m very pleased to welcome Daniel back into the team. There’s no doubt about his driving skills, and he already knows many of us, so his integration will be easy and straight forward. The team will also profit a lot from his experience, as he is an eight-time Formula 1 Grand Prix winner.”
Ricciardo has been outspoken about his desire to be back in Formula 1 now, not willing to wait for an opening down the road. It seems that the decision was taken when De Vries failed to match benchmarks set by Tsunoda in simulations, despite multiple opportunities to do so.
Ricciardo is reportedly seen as more marketable by sponsors than Dutchman De Vries, and so the switch was made.
The move brings Ricciardo back into the same team where he raced back in 2012 and 2013, when it was known as Toro Rosso.