DANIEL RICCIARDO could be handed a lifeline by Haas if he is dumped by McLaren.
Rumours persist that the Aussie is set to lose his seat for next season to Oscar Piastri.
Ricciardo, 33, has struggled to get the better of Brit Lando Norris since joining McLaren last season.
He has one year left on his contract which entitles him to a yearly salary of £17.5million.
And if McLaren were to release him to make way for rising F1 star Piastri, then the former Red Bull star could demand a wage pay-out after being left to look for a seat.
However he might not be looking for long, amid reports Haas team principal Guenther Steiner is interested in offering the eight-time Grand Prix winner a seat alongside Kevin Magnussen for 2023.
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The Express reports that Steiner called Ricciardo ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix to discuss opportunities with him, despite having this year’s seat filled by Mick Schumacher.
It seems highly unlikely that the Honey Badger will be driving in the McLaren next season but he is determined to keep racing in F1.
As reported by The Mirror, Ricciardo said: “I could probably keep going, I believe I still thrive off it because I still believe I belong [in Formula 1] and can do it.
“That’s what really gets me jacked.
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“And the love of it, as well as knowing that any weekend that could be there [a win], like it could be around the corner, you know.
“The truth is, the highs you get are just so high because so much goes into it.
“So then the high and the reward is pretty amazing and pretty spectacular.”
Ricciardo has also been linked with a return to Alpine – previously called Renault – but he is not the only one linked with that seat.
Schumacher Jr has still not renewed his contract – which runs out at the end of the season – with Haas and his uncle Ralf Schumacher told Sky Germany that “he would be a candidate” for the Alpine seat.
Ralf also went on to say that believes that Ricciardo “would not get another chance in Formula 1.”
The Alpine seat became available after Aston Martin announced that two-time World Champion Fernando Alonso will be making a shock move to the Silverstone-based team.
Mick – whose the son of seven-time World Champion Michael Schumacher – had a rocky start to his first two seasons in Formula One.
He finished the 2021 season with no points while being paired up with Nikita Mazepin.
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In 2022, he crashed twice and caused Haas some financial headaches as they had to keep within the budget cap to fix the car, and this caused him to miss out on upgrades for the race in the Hungaroring.
He is now redeeming himself by scoring points for Haas and achieving better qualifying position to start in races.
Source: Motorsport - thesun.co.uk
