McLaren Confirm Interest In Ricciardo, Red Bull Hopeful Of Re-Signing Australian

McLaren confirmed their interest in signing Daniel Ricciardo for the 2019 season but Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner is hoping the Australian driver re-signs with the Austrian owned team.

Recent reports suggested the Woking-based team were keen on hiring the Red Bull driver, who will be out of contract with his current employers at the end of the 2018 campaign. He is yet to make a decision on his next destination, but reports suggested McLaren had made a $20m-a-year offer.

McLaren director Eric Boullier confirmed during the team bosses press conference Thursday they are interested in signing Ricciardo, but admitted there was nothing concrete on the table at the moment.

Ricciardo is highly sought after with both Mercedes and Ferrari also linked with his services. However, the prospect of driving for the two title contenders could be closing as Mercedes and Ferrari are looking within their team for future drivers.

The Silver Arrows team could retain Valtteri Bottas as Lewis Hamilton’s partner for 2019, while Ferrari are pondering promoting rising-star Charles Leclerc to the works Ferrari team as a replacement for Kimi Raikkonen, who is yet to be offered a new deal.

McLaren are currently struggling to match the top three teams, but are hoping the arrival of a top driver can help improve their chances of getting back to winning ways. However, the driver and McLaren made it clear there is nothing in the pipeline that suggests he could join them in the future.

"We love Daniel," Boullier said at the French GP, as quoted by Sky Sports. "I've personally known him for many years, and he's doing a good job for Red Bull.

"As long as a driver of that calibre is on the market, obviously you look if there is any discussion possible. ... At this time of the year it's still too early to talk about the line-up in the future, so it's just a normal, gentle discussion."

Meanwhile, Red Bull chief Horner is not willing to accept Ricciardo will leave the team and remains confident about the Australian re-signing with the four-time Constructors’ champions. Ricciardo made it clear that he wants to be challenging for the title in 2019, and will join a team that can provide him a car that will help win his first F1 title.

Red Bull have ended their partnership with Renault and will partner Honda for two seasons in 2019 and 2020. The Japanese manufacturer endured three disappointing seasons with McLaren before ending their partnership in 2017 and joining hands with Toro Rosso – Red Bull’s sister team – and this season they have shown positive signs in terms of performance and reliability, and Horner revealed it was the reason they chose Honda over French manufacturer.

"The key for me is does Daniel want to be in the team next year," Horner said. "I get the impression that he very much wants to be."

"Daniel knows the reason behind this is to get ourselves in the best possible position and that's in his interests as well. He knows the ambition of this team,” the Red Bull chief said, when asked if their decision to partner with the Japanese manufacturer will have an affect on Ricciardo’s decision.

"I would be surprised if he was to leave, because it's a good fit between him and Red Bull, but it is Formula 1,” he added later.