Webber: Ricciardo deserves my seat

Mark Webber has announced that he will leave the Red Bull Racing team and Formula 1 at the end of the year to join Porsche in Endurance. However, the question of his replacement remains unresolved for the moment.

And even though Christian Horner has stated that no decision would be made immediately, rumors are rife about his replacement, with the three most frequently mentioned drivers being Kimi Räikkönen and the two Toro Rosso drivers, Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne.

If he should not have a say regarding his successor, Mark Webber believes that Daniel Ricciardo should be offered his seat, as he told BBC Radio: “I think he’s in the starting blocks, he deserves it and he has done thousands of kilometers so far in Europe at a very young age. He has been in contention several times and has been supported, and that’s part of the game. Daniel knows that it will be a different challenge in a team like that, the pressure changes. Who knows what will happen, but we wish him the best.”

The young Australian has delivered strong performances this season, especially in qualifying, but in races, it has been more challenging, so much so that he is currently behind Jean-Eric Vergne in the drivers’ championship – 13 points for the Frenchman compared to 11 for the Australian. The duel between the two men remains relevant.