F1: Mercedes chief confirms Ricciardo's Red Bull talks, heaps praise on McLaren ace

Daniel Ricciardo will not be on the Formula 1 grid in 2023 after losing his seat at McLaren. The Woking-based racing team chose to terminate the Australian's contract one year early owing to his inability to get the best out of the car and deliver consistent results.

The 33-year-old is keen to remain within the sport and is hoping to land a competitive drive in 2024. Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff did not rule out the possibility of asking the Australian to join the Silver Arrows team as their third driver in 2023. He also mentioned that Ricciardo is in talks with a number of teams including Red Bull.

Ricciardo will bring a ton of experience to any team he joins, as he remains an accomplished driver despite his stock falling since his departure from Red Bull in 2018. The Aussie racer has eight victories in F1, with the latest coming at the 2021 Italian Grand Prix - the highlight of his short McLaren career.

"I think Daniel is speaking to a few teams about a potential role, also Red Bull," Wolff said, as quoted on Sky Sports. "For us, we very much like him, he's a great character but we are not in a position yet who is going to be our third driver."

Ricciardo was considered a potential future F1 champion during his time with Red Bull, with whom he claimed seven of his eight wins. However, since his decision to quit the Austrian team following the emergence of Max Verstappen, he has failed to recapture the form that made him one of the sport's top prospects.

But Wolff has no doubt that any team that could sign him will be at an advantage owing to his knowledge of the sport, and experience with modern F1 machinery. Mercedes are on the lookout for a third driver after allowing Nick de Vries to join Alpha Tauri, but are yet to make a final decision.

"Personality, and he's been around for a long time," Wolff added, heaping further praise on the Australian. "He knows these cars inside out so that could be really advantageous. But I don't want to put any rumours out there because we haven't decided."