How Ricciardo was collateral damage for Red Bull’s 2026 driver headache

Red Bull and RB‘s decision to drop Daniel Ricciardo mid-season had nothing to do with him performing so badly that an immediate change was needed.

RB team boss Laurent Mekies made it crystal clear last weekend that if the Australian had the car underneath him he needed, like in the Miami sprint this year, his pure speed was still there to make the most of it.

Instead, the manoeuvring that has triggered Ricciardo’s F1 exit and brought Liam Lawson back to a race cockpit is very much about Red Bull needing to get on the front foot with its 2026 driver plans.

If we rewind a bit, we must remember that Ricciardo’s comeback for RB last year was ultimately an audition for Red Bull.

With Sergio Perez having some wobbles throughout the second half of 2023, Red Bull knew that if Ricciardo showed the same speed he did during that post-British GP test in the RB19 last year then he would be a comfort blanket to slot in if its Mexican incumbent did not lift his game.

But things did not get off to the best of starts when Ricciardo broke his wrist at Zandvoort, opening up the door for Lawson to impress during a five-race stint for the squad.

Then, despite Perez struggling massively at the start of 2024, Ricciardo’s inconsistent form meant he came short of convincing Red Bull that he would be an automatic step up if given a return to Milton Keynes.

There was that very brief spell around the Hungarian and Belgian GPs where Ricciardo appeared to be in the frame as Red Bull lost hope in Perez, but once the squad committed to sticking with what it knew, then that ultimately set in stone the events that have played out this week.

Looming right at the back of the minds of Red Bull’s senior management is what to do about its drivers for 2026, even though in theory both Max Verstappen and Perez have contracts.

Neither can be 100% certain they will be there. Verstappen could walk to another team or out of F1 completely, while Perez needs to perform better to secure his place. These possibilities mean Red Bull cannot risk having any other top-line options on the table if it needs to pursue a Plan B.

The team has to be sure it has its bases covered on two fronts.

First, there is keeping a close watch over top talent from other teams – which is why Red Bull team boss Christian Horner has been stirring the pot by saying that