Daniel Ricciardo will be leaving Renault after just his second season with the team. He will replace Carlos Sainz in 2021, who is increasingly likely to be Ferrari’s driver of choice to fill Vettel’s seat.
Ricciardo first joined Renault in an interesting team swap from Red Bull at the end of 2018. A season into the partnership, his performance has been only average when compared with his former Red Bull days.
“Signing Daniel is another step forward in our long-term plan and will bring an exciting new dimension to the team, alongside Lando,” stated McLaren CEO Zak Brown. “This is good news for our team, partners and of course our fans.”
He will be joined alongside youngster Lando Norris, who had his contract with McLaren extended thanks to his promising debut season. This driver lineup could be the most entertaining on the 2021 grid. Both Ricciardo and Norris have a reputation among fans as the F1 jokers.
This move leaves a vacancy on Renault, which some believe could be filled by Fernando Alonso. If this is true, Alonso would be returning from a two-year Formula One absence. He raced for Renault from 2002 to 2009 (excluding 2007, when he drove for McLaren).
