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Daniel Ricciardo believes that the evolution of the Visa Cashapp RB team beyond Red Bull’s junior team will make their competitors view them seriously. The Australian felt leading the midfield is one of the clear objectives of the team ahead of the 2024 season.
Speaking at the launch of the Visa Cashapp RB 2024 challenger, Daniel Ricciardo felt the new partners and renaissance of the Red Bull sister team will reflect in its ability on the track. Apart from dropping the AlphaTauri name, the Red Bull junior squad is now set to become a serious midfielder and B team. They have had a flood of partners such as Visa, Cashapp, Hugo, Tudor and Piquadro to name a few.
Explaining the new changes at the team at their car launch, Daniel Ricciardo said:
“How I feel about it is probably for the outside in, other teams or people who think that it's just a Red Bull kind of junior team, it's a way for everyone to take us more seriously. I think it's a year where we feel like we kind of stand on our own two feet, and have some serious partners on board. And I think that's massively beneficial for us as a team. The structure has changed a lot, a lot of new personnel coming in, and we’re trying to really build something that's going to fight obviously, we all hope for now, at the front of the midfield.”
Asked about the new car, he replied:
“From what I've seen, it's cool. Performance is of course primary, and we'll have to see how that goes on track. But we’ve got the looking good part down, and hopefully everyone else likes it too.”
Asked about the targets for the 2024 season, Daniel Ricciardo said:
“We want to be fighting at the front of the midfield. So if we're consistently a Q3 car, consistently getting points, top 10s, not just the odd race, maybe a sixth and then a 15th. I think because consistency then kind of really shows that you have an understanding of the car, and the team has a good grasp on it, and that can then help you go that step closer to the front. So consistency, that's what I'm going for so far.”
Pointing out the new financial partners and sponsors on board, Daniel Ricciardo feels the Red Bull sister team Visa Cashapp RB now means serious business. He reckoned that the partners are beneficial for the team, particularly with the new structure and recruitment changes.
Before the launch, the Faenza-based squad which had a UK facility in Bicester moved to its facility into the Milton Keynes campus. They have gone through an organisational restructuring with a proper CEO Peter Bayer and a new team principal Laurent Mekies, who replaced Franz Tost.
In 2023, Red Bull announced its plans to restructure their sister team and bridge the gap between the two in terms of performance. Daniel Ricciardo suggests that their objective for the 2024 season is to consistently have their car in Q3 and possibly lead the midfield of the grid.
Their 2024 F1 car named the VCARB1 draws a lot of inspiration from Red Bull’s 2023 challenger, the dominant RB19 which won 21 out of 22 races in 2023. The two cars have many similarities which leads to the suspicion that the Visa Cashapp RB might have better prospects than leading the midfield.
Daniel Ricciardo suggests that top 5 results remain target for Visa Cashapp RB team
Daniel Ricciardo believes that the realistic target for his team would be to consistently finish in the top five. The Australian feels their team made progress with the development of their car and results within the top 5 every weekend would be the next step. If they can achieve it with consistency, podiums would follow according to the 34-year-old.
Speaking to Lawrence Baretto at the car launch in Las Vegas, Daniel Ricciardo said:
“You have to aim high, but being in this sport so long, you want to remain realistic as you don’t want to end up ultimately disappointed. Top-fives should be a target and if we get into that position, maybe some podiums present themselves. Of course we want to win but, you know, let’s…I think we made steps last year, let’s make a few more steps. Do I think top-five results are on the table – and could they be on the table in the first half of the season? I’d like to think so.”
AlphaTauri finished eighth in the championship standings in the 2023 championship. Daniel Ricciardo, who was roped in to drive for them mid-season had an interrupted run after a hand injury. However, given that this will be the first car designed to be adapted to the Australian’s style of driving, the 2024 season will be a litmus test for him. In 2023, the Australian was able to qualify as high as fourth and finish seventh.
