Aussie Daniel Ricciardo might well be preparing for his final F1 race at the Singapore Grand Prix after a disastrous qualifying session at the Marina Bay Circuit.
The Australian’s future is up in the air, with various reports claiming that Singapore could be his final race as Red Bull look to the future with Liam Lawson.
After a promising first day of practice, Ricciardo ultimately qualified in 16th for Sunday’s Grand Prix with another underwhelming performance.
Red Bull boss Christian Horner has addressed speculation about it being the Aussie’s last race, insisting that the team will be looking at all their options after the race.
‘Well, look, you know, these things are under constant review,’ Horner said to Sky Sports F1.
‘There is obviously a much bigger picture than, other than just Daniel, as we, you know, continue to look at all of our options, you know, as we, as we move forward.
‘Now, there’s a natural break coming, you know with effectively almost a month’s gap to the next race, so it’s only natural that you’ll take stock and consider, you know, all of those options, uh, for the final part of the year.’
The Aussie hasn’t had an impressive season and Horner is now hinting at ‘difficult decisions’ being needed.
Daniel Ricciardo hasn’t been offered a contract for 2025 and it appears his F1 career is drawing to a rapid close
Red Bull boss Christian Horner hinted at ‘difficult decisions’ needing to be made
‘I’m not going to go into the ins and outs of drivers contracts,’ said Horner. ‘There’s privacy between the company and the individuals.
‘But, Liam, the job that he did for us last year in the VCARB car was very impressive.
‘Now, we took experience over that, because Daniel was our banker for if Sergio were to drop the ball, and Daniel’s had a reasonable season, but it hasn’t been a stellar year.
‘Now, the question is, how good is Liam? And you know, sometimes, difficult decisions have to be made in order to get those answers.
Although a decision has not yet been announced, some F1 fans are confident that there are obvious signs around Singapore of the team’s decision.
Inside the city’s MRT subway system, F1 teams have plastered advertising around ahead of the race weekend, and Red Bull are no different.
Of their four drivers – across the main Red Bull team and its sister outfit Visa Cash App RB – there is no sign of Ricciardo, or the struggling Sergio Perez.
That is in stark contract to Max Verstappen and Yuki Tsunoda, who are front and center of all the marketing campaigns with their future in the team secure.
Daniel Ricciardo is set for a crunch weekend with his future in doubt beyond Singapore
Ricciardo spoke to reporters at the circuit on Thursday, and even he admitted he is not sure that he’ll be in Texas for one of his favorite races on the calendar.
‘I actually heard that I won’t be in the car for this race as well, that was after Japan or something. I know how it is, and how it works, and I knew there was always going to be some dates and deadlines… post-summer break, or post-Singapore,’ he said.
‘So post-Singapore is the next one. But honestly, still so many things are up in the air, let’s see how the weekend goes, I’m going to give it all I can. We’ll see what happens, I’ll try and get the thing on the podium, that’s my plan.
‘After the decision, that’s when the decisions will be made. Us that know the contract, that’s where the dates fall. So after the weekend, we’ll know more.’
Reports have claimed that Ricciardo is set to be axed in place of New Zealand’s Liam Lawson – currently the team’s reserve driver – ahead of the New Zealander getting a permanent spot on the grid in 2025.
In the main team, Perez’s future is also uncertain despite his new two-year contract, with the Mexican well off the pace of world champion Max Verstappen.
It was initially thought that Ricciardo could make the step up to Red Bull from V-Ca-RB, but now the most likely outcome is that he is let go completely.