Christian Horner told talkSPORT he can see Daniel Ricciardo returning to Formula 1 – just days after he seemingly confirmed his retirement.
The Australian was replaced by Liam Lawson at Visa Cash App RB in September, who has now unseated another driver in Sergio Perez.
Perez was cut from Horner’s F1 team on Wednesday, being replaced by New Zealand racer Lawson.
That change had originally been the path laid out for Ricciardo following his first F1 comeback with Red Bull’s junior team in 2023.
However, ‘The Honey Badger’ failed to consistently replicate the type of form he showed during his first tenure under Horner, where he won seven out of his eight career Grands Prix.
Nevertheless, Ricciardo remains one of the most popular F1 drivers in America, which has been central to fan pushes for him to return.
Ricciardo was central to the rise of Netflix sensation Drive to Survive, which has been credited with helping the sport finally crack the US.
The 2025 F1 grid has been locked in, but there may be space for the 35-year-old in the following season with potential F1 newbies Cadillac, who have been accepted as a provisional 11th entrant when the sport’s new regulations come in.
Horner joined talkSPORT Driving and was asked about the possible arrival of Cadillac and how that will affect his side’s prep for the new season.
“It doesn’t change anything really for us,” he said. “We just focus on ourselves.
“It means that some of the paddocks will be a little busier with an 11th team in 2026. But for us, it’s business as normal.
“There’s nothing, they’ve got their own mountain to climb. We’re focused on making sure that we’re staying at the top of ours.”
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And when asked if Ricciardo could make a return with Cadillac as has been suggested, Horner said he wouldn’t be surprised.
But he thinks another former Red Bull star could be in the running too – the man he just cut loose from the sport, Perez.
“There are rumours,” he said. “I wouldn’t be at all surprised.
“I wouldn’t be at all surprised even if they went for the experience of somebody like Sergio and if he decides he wants to continue his career in Formula 1.”
Ricciardo was dropped by Red Bull in September with Horner later citing a ‘lack of consistency’.
At the time, he had scored ten fewer points than his teammate Yuki Tsunoda, who most had expected the Australian to outperform.
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Following the Singapore Grand Prix, RB confirmed that Lawson would be replacing Ricciardo for the rest of the season.
Fans voiced their frustration that Ricciardo was seemingly denied the chance to have an official last race.
The Perth-born racer fought back tears after his P18 finish in Singapore but stopped short of confirming he had been sacked – with the news not announced until days later.
He has since kept tight-lipped over what the future holds for him but has dropped several hints that he is not angling for any comeback.
In October. Ricciardo was pictured wearing a baseball cap, which read: “I’m retired. Having a good time is my job.”
A video has since emerged online which saw a fan ask directly about Cadillac, to which Ricciardo comes back with: “Nah, I’m done.”
Perez, meanwhile, ended the 2024 season in awful form, earning just 21 points across ten rounds.
Having won five Grand Prix in his previous three campaigns, the 34-year-old trailed champion Verstappen by a staggering 285 points.
That ultimately cost Red Bull the chance to defend their constructors crown, with McLaren winning instead.
Asked who Verstappen’s biggest challenge is for the new season, Horner said: “I would say McLaren drivers.”
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