Steiner confirms Schumacher, Ricciardo and Hulkenberg in line for Haas' vacant seat

Daniel Ricciardo looks to be heading for a "break" from racing in Formula 1 next year rather than take up an offer for talks with Haas.

Haas boss Guenther Steiner said in September that he had sent a "text" to the struggling 33-year-old, whose final contract year at McLaren was bought out as the British team preferred to sign rookie Oscar Piastri.

Meanwhile, Steiner admits he has had talks with Nico Hulkenberg, who is bidding to return to the F1 grid next year after losing his full-time seat in 2019.

"I spoke to him," he told RTL. "I've known Nico for a long time - better than I know Daniel. We're talking, but nothing has been done yet."

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It's Ricciardo's choice

On the other hand, Steiner indicated that Ricciardo had not shown interest in becoming Kevin Magnussen's teammate in 2023.

"If he's interested in us, he's not shy to call me up," he told the Associated Press. "I am not going to chase him down.

"I want him to decide what he wants to do for himself first before being talked into something. I think he's a good driver, and I don't know how he got [into] the situation he's in now, but I think he needs to come clean with himself and decide what he's going to do.

"For us, he would be a big hit. He was a race winner just last year. I rate him as a driver, and I have no idea why he doesn't perform right now. That is for him to figure out."

READ: Comparing Mick Schumacher's under-fire F1 career to his greatest challenge... father Michael

Steiner insists that Mick Schumacher is still in the running to keep the seat after team owner Gene Haas warned that the German would need to score points in the last four races of this season.

"I'm