This Austrian driver, Daniel Ricciardo, is certain to leave the McLaren team after the 2022 F1 championship ends.
The McLaren team and Daniel Ricciardo have agreed to terminate the contract which actually binds both parties until the upcoming F1 2023.
However, McLaren was confirmed to have to pay a number of severance pay to Daniel Ricciardo in order to leave the team based in Woking England.
The termination of Daniel Ricciardo's contract was carried out by McLaren in order to give a place to a young driver, Oscar Piastri.
Oscar Piastri had caused a stir because he rejected the statement from the Alpine team, which stated that the driver would race in F1 2023 to replace Fernando Alonso.
It turns out that before Alpine announced him as a driver in F1 2023, Piastri had already moved closer to McLaren.
The case of Piastri's defection to McLaren was not accepted by Alpine, which reportedly will file a lawsuit in court.
Ricciardo himself does not seem too bothered about his future in F1 despite being kicked out by McLaren.
"It has been an honor to be part of the McLaren family for two seasons but after discussions with Zak Brown and Andreas Seidl, we have opted to terminate our contract with the team early and part ways at the end of the season," Ricciardo said in a McLaren official release.
"I will announce my future plans very soon but depending on what the future holds, I have no regrets and I am proud of my efforts and work at McLaren, especially the victory at Monza last year," said Ricciardo.
Daniel Ricciardo could be one of the best options for the Alpine team who now need a driver to replace Fernando Alonso.
Alpine did not deny the opportunity to reunite with Ricciardo in F1 2023.
Apart from Alpine, the Haas team has reportedly also contacted the former Red Bull Racing pilot to become Kevin Magnussen's partner in F1 2023.