‘Question marks are there’ - Daniel Ricciardo issued another warning over F1 future
One legendary F1 team boss isn't convinced by Daniel Ricciardo since his final year with McLaren.
Legendary F1 team boss Eddie Jordan isn’t convinced Daniel Ricciardo has recovered from his gruelling spell at McLaren following a difficult start to the 2024 season.
Ricciardo is already under pressure after Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko issuing a warning that he “has to come up with something soon”.
The Australian has been out-performed by RB teammate Yuki Tsunoda in the opening two rounds of the season.
In Saudi Arabia, Ricciardo embarrassingly spun in the first sequence of corners while he was about to be lapped by Sergio Perez.
Ricciardo will need to up his form significantly to keep his RB drive over Liam Lawson let alone look to replace Perez alongside Max Verstappen.
Speaking on the latest episode of the Formula for Success podcast, Jordan questioned whether he’d want to sign Ricciardo if he was a current team owner.
“I don’t think there’s a more loved personality in F1,” Jordan said. “Certainly got the best smile I have ever seen in F1.
“He’s a magic guy to have in a team. But that doesn’t give you the right to be the driver in the team and I am just worried that the end of the McLaren era was really something that stood out and I couldn’t see where he’d lost it.
“There’s been nothing since then that convinces me that I would want to invest my hard earned sponsorship cash to keep Daniel.”
The good news for Ricciardo is that it’s his home race in Australia next up as he looks to kick start his campaign.
Jordan suggested that with talents like Oliver Bearman waiting in the wings, Ricciardo needs to up his game to avoid being replaced.
“He needs a result more than anyone perhaps,” he added. “He needs to get it together because otherwise he’s going to be replaced. He can understand why he would be replaced because the performances are not just there.
“He shouldn’t be spinning the car, he shouldn’t be putting himself out of sequence in a pit stop. You don't see Max doing that, you don’t see other people doing that. Daniel, as much as we adore him and I think he’s a huge asset for F1, the stopwatch never lies.
“The stopwatch in terms of Daniel, the question marks are out there. When we see people like Oliver Bearman coming like the way he did, people like Daniel will need to look over his shoulder and think ‘how much time do I have left here?’.”
