Ricciardo not looking for number 1 status at Red Bull

Daniel Ricciardo has downplayed the idea of him seeking the number 1 status at Red Bull Racing which is delaying his contract negotiations while he hints ‘not every door is closed’ regarding his Formula 1 future.

The Red Bull driver feels a run of ‘disruption or bad luck’ at recent races has acted as a distraction to his contract talks. Since his emotional victory at the Monaco Grand Prix, Ricciardo is yet to return to the rostrum in the past four races, while he's faced up to conflict with Red Bull in France and teammate Max Verstappen during qualifying in Austria.

Ricciardo insists he isn’t seeking top dog status at Red Bull over Verstappen but has alluded to recent issue stalling his new F1 deal.

“Not that I don’t want that [number 1 status] but I don’t need that, it’s all right,” Ricciardo said. “Obviously Max is driving well but I genuinely think there have been things every weekend since Monaco which have just been a bit of a disruption or a bit of bad luck. Like the front wing and all that with Paul Ricard. Just pisses me off.”

Ricciardo is expected to sign a fresh deal with Red Bull with options elsewhere drying up as he seeks a package which will enable him to fight for F1 world titles.

Both Mercedes and Ferrari were rumoured to be interested in the Australian driver but attention has cooled in recent weeks while McLaren were also briefly linked with a move for the 29-year-old.

“Not every door is closed,” Ricciardo said regarding his future. “But it’s looking more and more likely that the other top teams will probably remain with their line ups.

“I don’t have the facts on that but you just kind of read between the lines and you feel that that is probably going to remain.

“So obviously if it wasn’t Red Bull then they are the other two most attractive options, so if they are not possible, then for me now it is hard to be convinced that another option is better than Red Bull. So just making sure that I’m right with my judgments.”