F1 | Red Bull, Horner: “Ricciardo's deadline? It doesn't mean he wants to leave..."

The statements released in recent days by Helmut Marko (“Ricciardo is already on the market”) have created a domino effect in the house Red Bull: if the Australian driver, teased in the press conference, did not go too far, postponing the discussion until next year (his contract expires in 2019), Chris horner, Red Bull team principal, threw water on the fire, underlining the Anglo-Austrian team's firm desire to maintain the current driver line-up for the foreseeable future. "Our priority is to keep both riders in the team” – said Horner. “We want to make sure that Daniel and Max (Steps) stay with us for a while".

For Ricciardo this is an unprecedented situation: never before, in fact, had the Australian found himself in deadline with Red Bull. However, according to Horner, this does not prelude to a goodbye: “It's the first time Daniel is on deadline, he has been with Red Bull for ten years and will be free for the first time. But that doesn't mean he wants to leave, it doesn't mean we want him to go somewhere else, or that we want someone else. Our priority, I repeat, is to keep these two riders".

Federico Martino