Christian Horner has revealed that Daniel Ricciardo will be conducting a number of tests on behalf of Red Bull Racing later this season. The team boss was very pleased with the Australian’s arrival, which he said brought a lot of positives.

When it was announced that Ricciardo would be leaving the McLaren team at the end of 2022, Red Bull Racing didn’t have to think long. The Austrian team decided to bring its former driver back to Milton Keynes, this time as a third driver. “It’s very positive for us to have him in the team, he’s contributed to the team, rider and technician,” said the team boss at the race weekend in Australia. “Hopefully he will rediscover his love for sport. He will do some tests for us at the end of the year and then we will see how it goes. But I think it’s a different experience.”

Ricciardo was on location for the first time this season at the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, and his presence was positive, according to team boss Horner. “It must have been very difficult for him not to be a driver this weekend, but he has jumped into it and accepted his new role,” said Horner. “He really got into it. He was at all the briefings, working hard on the simulator in England, providing race support and doing some development work as well.”

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“Daniel is just positive energy to have. Great to see mojo back, to see a big smile on his face. The whole room lit up when he walked in.” Ricciardo was greeted with open arms by the public in his home country. “His popularity in Formula 1 – even if he doesn’t drive, he is still probably the most popular driver here.”