19 December 2023 , 18:49
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Daniel Ricciardo shared sympathy for the man whose sacking paved the road for his return to the Formula 1 grid.
But the Aussie has also bluntly stated that Nyck de Vries didn't get the required results to cut it in F1. Though he is a former Formula 2 and Formula E champion, the Dutchman failed to score a single point in his 10 outings for AlphaTauri.
He was axed in favour of Ricciardo who himself scored points only once in his seven races for the team. But he did so in style by finishing seventh in Mexico - AlphaTauri's best result of the whole season.
Ricciardo knows what it is like to have your time with a team cut short. After all, he was originally supposed to spend the 2023 season with McLaren but their partnership was ended a year early as the Aussie struggled to get to grips with his car.
"I'd been through it less than a year earlier - I understood it, you know, but it's all very subjective," he told F1's Beyond the Grid podcast. And though he has great sympathy for De Vries, he also made clear his belief that his predecessor simply hadn't performed.
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He added: "Did he have enough time? Maybe not. Were his results good enough? Maybe not. But maybe it's just what I've been through and I'm in my mid-thirties now. We've all put so much into this and I know Nyck has put so much into his career.
"Obviously, he finally got a chance, and it didn't work out. Six months earlier, he's probably the most excited he's ever been to start a race season. Six months later, he doesn't have a race seat. So, I feel for him and anyone in that position, because your dream can start and ultimately kind of finish or be derailed in a short amount of time."
De Vries' misfortune was Ricciardo's gain, though, and the Aussie will continue with AlphaTauri for the 2024 season. He sees it as an opportunity to audition for the Red Bull seat he willingly vacated five years ago but desperately wants to win back.
And the opportunity may arise in the next 12 months. Sergio Perez is out of contract next December and his patchy form this year has invited plenty of speculation over his future with the team.
Red Bull have never shied away from replacing a driver mid-season and, should more poor results prove more costly to the team's championship hopes in 2024, Ricciardo is in a prime position to benefit again from another rival's failures.