A single word from Ricciardo shut down Ferrari rumours forever

Sharon Wong
Subscriber

So how did Daniel Ricciardo get us all to shut up about a potential move from Red Bull to Ferrari? All he had to do was tell us yes.

Source: Shevel Artur/Shutterstock
Source: Shevel Artur/Shutterstock

Due to the rumours floating around, the Thursday press conference ahead of the Austrian Grand Prix was salivating for a confirmation of some sort. Would he take the plunge or wouldn’t he? So everyone waited with bated breath when the Australian was asked if he would drive for Red Bull till the end of 2018. He decided to keep his response as matter-of-fact as possible.

“Yeah. Yeah”

Daniel Ricciardo

It was all he felt he needed to tell us, really. He had his own reasons for providing the least detail he could get away with.

“Every word I say… one word turns into 10, and then 30 and 50. So, I’ll just leave it at that.”

Daniel Ricciardo

A wise choice. Despite not winning any titles before he turned 27 years of age, he’s become a visible enough personality where any whiff of detail about him will become a breeding ground for conjecture. And there is no man on earth who doesn’t want to be in charge of his own narrative, let alone someone who drives for a living.

Plus, there’s still life in his partnership with Red Bull yet. He’s got a multitude of ambitions he plans to achieve before his time with them is up and a fair few of them are pretty lofty. The first thing on his Red Bull bucket list starts with a capital W.

“We want to win.

“This year is going to be tough for a world title but where we are this year is where we are. You can’t do anything about it now.

“But looking ahead to next year and spending time with the team and seeing what’s ahead, I think it’s the best place to be to try to challenge Mercedes, so that’s where it stems from.”

Daniel Ricciardo

Source: @sportingnewsau/Twitter
Source: @sportingnewsau/Twitter

But he’s not just aiming to take down the competition outside of the team. His next target is much, much closer to home. After a roaring debut, Max Verstappen has skyrocketed to the forefront of F1 consciousness and onto the radars of many other drivers who are eager for a piece of his pie. Very vocal among these is Ricciardo, who’s been wanting to knock the young Dutchman of his perch for quite some time now. All in the friendliest of spirits, of course.

“In a way, we’ve thrived off a new challenge, the new rivalry, so hopefully it can keep pushing the team in the right direction.

“Hopefully, there is some rivalry. A rivalry would probably mean we’re fighting for victories more often.”

Daniel Ricciardo.

And that’s how you assert yourselves. Lay down the facts and make some goals. #Swag.

 

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