Alpine open to Daniel Ricciardo return for 2023

Alpine are open to a return for Daniel Ricciardo ahead of the 2023 Formula 1 season.

The F1 summer break is here and we’re still a while away from the next race in Belgium at the end of the month, but we’ve certainly been treated to a fair few headlines off of the track to keep us interested.

Indeed, the situation involving Daniel Ricciardo and Oscar Piastri is certainly proving dramatic, with it being reported that McLaren have now informed their current Aussie that he is going to be replaced, and his younger compatriot looks to be the man that is going to replace him.

Alpine, of course, believe that Piastri should be driving with them for 2023 following the exit of Fernando Alonso to Aston Martin for next season, but if he is at McLaren next year then they will need a new driver to partner Esteban Ocon, and maybe they could go back to a former employee.

Asked by Autosport if they’d be interested in bringing Daniel Ricciardo back to the team, Alpine team principal Otmar Szafnauer said:

“I mean, if you look at Fernando, for example, he comes and goes, and I think that happens to other drivers too.

“And I don’t think that’s an issue at all. I think what we need to focus on is, like I say, the plans that we have for the next 89-88 races.

“We’ve got to make sure that we complement that plan with the best driver that we can, and there are some options out there for us. And we put the best driver in next to Esteban [Ocon], so that we can move forward towards what we’ve been planning.”