Daniel Ricciardo is very happy with the direction of AlphaTauri and feels that the team listens to him and values his experience
Daniel Ricciardo says that the AlphaTauri team is working in the right direction and that he could not ask for more from the engineers than they have delivered in the last few races of the season. When the Australian joined the former Red Bull junior team in the summer of 2023, the team was at rock bottom
The team had parted company with Nyck de Vries after just ten races and was in last place in the constructors’ championship. Ricciardo’s hand injury, which kept him out of action for weeks, meant that his start was not really a successful one either, but after his comeback the team’s fortunes certainly improved.
In particular, the Singapore update with the new Red Bull suspension was a good step, which even brought AlphaTauri up to eighth place in the end. “We definitely found a few things over the course of the season,” emphasizes Ricciardo.
Even for the final race of the season in Abu Dhabi, they brought an extensive underbody package with which they wanted to attack Williams’ seventh place once again. Although this was narrowly unsuccessful, the performance was there: Yuki Tsunoda achieved his best qualifying result of the season and also finished eighth in the race.
Ricciardo rates the update as “positive” and also sees it as good proof that the team is listening to his input: “I have the feeling that the team has tried to implement all the things I mentioned in the best possible way,” he praises. “And to be honest, that’s all I can ask for at the moment.”
He emphasizes that he and the team are on the same wavelength and continue to look ahead. “I think they value my experience and I think that’s really important for the future. “
AlphaTauri “no more junior team “
2024 will be a new beginning for AlphaTauri, which will no longer be called AlphaTauri. The team will have a new name and a new identity. Although the team will continue to exploit synergies with partner racing team Red Bull, it seems to be slowly moving away from being a training team. “I have the feeling that it is no longer a junior team,” says Ricciardo.
This is also clear from the drivers alone: Ricciardo is already an old hand with his experience from 239 Grand Prix starts, and Yuki Tsunoda is already entering his fourth season in 2024, although numerous rookies are waiting for promotion in Formula 2 – not forgetting Liam Lawson, who stood in for Ricciardo and impressed.
Instead of training, the focus now seems to be on development and good results. The name of the team in its new identity has not yet been officially determined, but the name Racing Bulls is said to have emerged. What is known, however, is that the team will have two major American sponsors and that Laurent Mekies will be the new team principal
Ricciardo: We are on a similar path
The team will therefore be different to the one that Daniel Ricciardo himself once grew up with in Formula 1. “The team is repositioning itself – a bit like when I went through this phase in my career,” says the Australian. “So we are all on a similar path.”
“I would say there is a lot of confidence. And I think Yuki has made huge gains and proved himself. And I think the team has a lot of confidence in me and still sees me as a Red Bull driver and the results to go with it – not a McLaren driver and the results to go with it!”
