Although Daniel Ricciardo appears to have renewed his contract with Red Bull for the next two years, however at the same time he is well aware that he is on the Ferrari ‘shopping list’ when the time comes to replace Kimi Raikkonen and admits he would not mind being Sebastian Vettel’s teammate again.
Ricciardo is quoted by AAP saying, “I understand if [Ferrari] were to make a change I am a driver on their list. They haven’t made anything clear to me. There haven’t been any calls saying: we’re going to get rid of Kimi, we want you, can you do it with your contract? this or that.”
However the Australian added, “I am aware they’d be interested, I don’t blame them. But other than what’s been said in the media there’s been nothing else, honestly.”
A move to Ferrari would mean renewing his partnership with Vettel – the pair were teammates at Red Bull in 2014, in which Ricciardo replaced fellow Aussie Mark Webber in the team.
Ricciardo won three grands prix that year and finished third in the world championship, while Vettel had a win-less season and ended fifth in the title race. At the end of the season the German departed Red Bull for Ferrari.
Ricciardo is not fazed by a possible reunion with the four times world champion, and recalled, “[Vettel] was solid and we actually got on well and obviously the season went better for me than it did for him.”
“He never really made excuses and if I beat him he shook my hand like a man and said:good race, so he was a good team-mate.”
“I like him, he’s a strong guy… I wouldn’t turn it down. But the only reason I would jump ship and go up against him again would be to fight for a world title,” insisted Ricciardo.
“Otherwise, if it’s just to have a [different] team-mate, I would rather try against a Lewis [Hamilton] or Fernando [Alonso] or something different.”
“He is quick and I would expect if we were to be team-mates again one day I’m sure he would put up a fight and it would be a good rivalry,” predicted Ricciardo.
Read the full story at GRAND PRIX 247
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