Daniel Ricciardo's sensational return to racing tipped as the Australian reportedly has multiple options on the table
Daniel Ricciardo could return to the grid as one of the drivers for the new Cadillac Formula 1 team when it joins the sport in 2026. As a popular driver, him taking the Cadillac seat would help in raising the team's popularity as soon as it joins the grid. Ricciardo has been without a seat since the Singapore GP earlier this year, and will not be returning to F1 in 2025, freeing him to take a spot with Cadillac.
This information comes from German tabloid, Bild, which claims that Ricciardo is the favorite to join the American team when it joins F1. However, Cadillac has not officially joined the grid for 2026 yet. In November, the team and Formula 1 came to an agreement in principle and the official addition to the constructors' table is yet to happen.
Daniel Ricciardo made his debut in F1 with the HRT team in 2011. Since then, he has raced for Toro Rosso, Red Bull Racing, Renault, McLaren, and most recently RB. His time with Red Bull Racing was the most succesful of his career, where he achieved 29 podiums and seven wins. He also made the podium twice with Renault in 2020 and grabbed his eighth career win with McLaren in 2021.
Other possibilities for Daniel Ricciardo's future
Daniel Ricciardo may also go in another direction and join another area of motorsports by moving to Toyota's motorsport team, Gazoo Racing.
While nothing is confirmed, publication race.news has reported that a former Toyota executive has confirmed a possible offer to Ricciardo for him to race in NASCAR for Gazoo Racing. Allegedly, the chairman of Toyota, Akio Toyoda, has also had a meeting with the Australian.
The source was quoted as saying:
“I’ve been told that Toyoda-san can see his (Ricciardo) value, not just as a driver, but as someone who can drag in the fans in huge numbers because of his natural charisma.”
Lastly, another avenue for Ricciardo to use his popularity to make his way back into the world of Formula 1 could be through a return to Red Bull Racing in some capacity. Speaking to the media in Austin earlier this year, Christian Horner opened the door to the possibility of Daniel Ricciardo re-joining the Red Bull team, saying (via PlanetF1):
"He has a massive profile, and you’re a long time retired so, if he chose to want to get involved in some activities in the US in any way, it’s something we’d be very open to."
Currently, no plans for Ricciardo's future have been confirmed and it still looks uncertain as to whether he will be back in Formula 1 anytime soon.