It’s heading into the depths of winter in Australia – if not there already – but one son of Down Under who has absolutely come from the cold is Daniel Ricciardo.

The F1 driver has been a forgotten figure within the sport since he was foolishly shafted by the McLaren team at the end of the 2022 season. Prior to that, he had been with Christian Horner’s all conquering Red Bull brigade. Though this observer always got the impression the Australian’s face didn’t fit with Bull’s little big man.

Horner may be possessed of a fair bit of bluster, but his team wouldn’t have garnered the abundance of success which has been the case in recent times were he not also kitted out with a large quantity of business acumen.

In short, as good as Max Verstappen undoubtedly is, Horner is streetwise enough to realise Ricciardo is far too good a driver to be sidelined without a team. Furthermore, with the greatest respect in the world, while Checo Perez is a decent backup driver in his own right, he has been found badly wanting as sidekick to the defending World Champion Verstappen.

Thus, while the Red Bull boss wouldn’t want to be seen as being too trigger happy in the midst of the season, it’s hardly coincidence that when Ricciardo was recalled to the F1 fold proper it was with Alpha Tauri who are from the same stable as Red Bull.

It probably wouldn’t take Hawking-esque logic to figure out what will happen next!