Three races into this season, Ricciardo has been outshone by his teammate Yuki Tsunoda. Both drivers are competing for the opportunity to replace Sergio Perez at Red Bull next season.
Christijan Albers, a former F1 driver, is disappointed with Daniel Ricciardo’s performance. The difference between Ricciardo and Tsunoda was noticeable at Ricciardo’s home race in Australia. While Tsunoda qualified in eighth place, Ricciardo qualified in 18th place. Even Ricciardo’s fastest lap in Q1 was not as good as Tsunoda’s lap time.
Ricciardo admitted that he couldn’t match Tsunoda’s pace in Q2, despite giving his best effort. Tsunoda finished the Grand Prix in seventh place, matching the team’s best result from the previous year, while Ricciardo finished in 12th place, a lap behind.
Albers criticized Ricciardo for focusing too much on off-track activities instead of concentrating on racing. He believes that Ricciardo should prioritize racing, and only then can he afford to be funny again.
Although there are rumors that Ricciardo has only two races to save his seat before Red Bull replaces him with Liam Lawson, the team has denied these reports. Albers doesn’t understand why Red Bull hasn’t already made the decision to replace Ricciardo with Lawson.
He thinks Lawson has performed exceptionally well and deserves a chance in the car. Albers believes that the team’s main purpose is to train and promote young talent, and Ricciardo’s performance doesn’t meet expectations anymore.
