Red Bull third driver Daniel Ricciardo has made a shock return to the Formula one grid after Alpha Tauri sacked rookie Nyck de Vries after only ten races with the team.
Ricciardo was forced into retirement at the end of last year’s season after McLaren dropped him due to a disappointing two years with the team. The eight-time race winner has been given on loan to Alpha Tauri from sister team Red Bull for the reminder of the 2023 season beginning later this month at the Hungarian Grand Prix. The Australian driver was recently in the RB19 at Silverstone doing laps for the Pirelli tyre test, setting times that would have placed him second during the British Grand Prix qualifying.
Dutchman De Vries took the motorsport community by storm last year when he replaced WIlliams driver Alexander Albon for the weekend due to the Thai driver being hospitalized with appendicitis. De Vries managed to qualify thirteenth on the grid before being promoted to eighth after penalties had been applied to drivers in front of him. He fought to keep his car in the points finishing in ninth after a late safety car, securing himself two championship points and Williams their equal best finish of the season in his first Formula One race.
(Photo by Mario Renzi – Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images)
De Vries has had to wait years for a shot in a Formula One car. Finishing his third Formula Two season as champion in 2019 with four wins and twelve podiums, he then moved on to Formula E winning in his rookie season with two wins and four podiums.
Though everybody’s excited fan favorite Daniel Ricciardo is returning, many are questioning if he deserves the opportunity more than the promising upcoming Red Bull juniors. Red Bull juniors Liam Lawson and Ayumu Iwasa have been heavy favorites for an Alpha Tauri seat since Pierre Gasly announced he was on the move to Alpine last year.
Red Bull junior and reserve driver Liam Lawson is one of the most talked about up-and-coming talents. Currently in Japan racing in the Super Formula series, Lawson won on debut, becoming the first rookie driver in half a decade to do so. Kiwi Lawson is currently sitting second in the championship with two wins. Lawson has proved to be a generational talent winning on debut in nine of the series he has raced in, even coming close to winning the DTM championship in his rookie season.
Japanese formula two driver Ayumu Iwasa whose been a Red bull junior since 2021 was another option for Alpha Tauri to consider. Iwasa won the French Formula 4 title in 2020 with nine wins and fifteen podiums, since then he’s quicky risen up the ranks. The DAMS driver graduated to Formula Two in 2022 having been with his team since. Iwasa finished off his 2022 season finishing fifth in the championship with two wins and six podiums. He’s currently third in the championship taking three wins and four podiums after eight rounds.
So it needs to be asked, with deserving Red Bull juniors is bringing back the Honey Badger the correct decision?
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