McLaren Offer Daniel Ricciardo $20M-A-Year Amid Mercedes Interest

Daniel Ricciardo is the most sought after driver on the grid at the moment after he confirmed earlier in the season he could leave Red Bull Racing at the end of the current campaign. Mercedes, Ferrari and most recently McLaren have all been linked with moves for the Australian driver.

Ricciardo will be out of contract at the end of the current campaign and is yet to indicate if he will sign a new deal with his current employers. He is keeping his options open after making it clear he will only sign for a team that can give him a car capable of winning the title next season.

Red Bull are keen to retain his services, while he has been also linked with Mercedes and Ferrari – the only two other teams that can currently offer him a race winning car. The Silver Arrows team’s CEO Toto Wolff confirmed he was on their shortlist as they look for a teammate for Lewis Hamilton, as his current teammate Valtteri Bottas is also out of contract after this season.

Ferrari have not revealed any official approach to Ricciardo, but they could also have a vacant seat if they allow Kimi Raikkonen to leave when his contract expires at the end of the season. But they could also promote Charles Leclerc, who is part of the team’s young driver program and is currently having an impressive debut season with Sauber.

McLaren are also reportedly interested in signing Ricciardo with both their current drivers — Fernando Alonso and Stoffel Vandoorne out of contract at the end of the season. They do have options to extend their deals, but with the former’s F1 future unclear they could have room for a new top draw driver.

According to Planet F1, the Woking-based team have offered the Australian driver $20m-a-year to join them for the 2019 season. It remains to be seen if he can be tempted to join a team still struggling to match the top teams.

Red Bull continue to be hopeful of retaining him beyond 2018, but their focus had recently shifted to getting a power unit deal sorted for next season. The Austrian owned team decided to drop Renault and partner with Honda for the 2019 and 2020 seasons.

Honda have shown improvement this season with the Red Bull sister team Scuderia Toro Rosso after struggling at the back of the grid with McLaren for three years since their return to the sport in 2015. But it remains to be seen if Ricciardo will sign with the team now that uncertainties remain about their competitiveness next season.

Red Bull advisor Dr. Helmut Marko recently revealed Ricciardo is waiting for Hamilton to commit his future to Mercedes before making a decision on his next destination. The British driver is expected to sign a new two-year deal with Mercedes in the coming months.

“Our Daniel Ricciardo is the king of the market. McLaren offers him more every week,” Marko said, as per PlanietF1. “Ricciardo doesn’t want to sign until Hamilton has signed. It’s a bit strange. Hopefully it ends soon.”