With the departure of Sebastian Vettel for the 2021 season, the open seat at Ferrari is sure to have a number of drivers throwing their CVs at the Scuderia.
According to reports, however, there is already one driver that has an option with Ferrari for the 2021 season.
Daniel Ricciardo
Ferrari reportedly signed Daniel Ricciardo to an option over the winter. The option is likely an exclusive negotiating period for both the driver and the team.
Essentially Ferrari has guaranteed they will speak with Ricciardo about any open seat before they offer the seat to any other driver. On the other side, Ricciardo has guaranteed that he will talk to Ferrari before he shops himself to any other team.
This isn’t a guarantee that Ricciardo will sign with Ferrari. Teams have these exclusive options from time to time but they don’t always pan out.
Ricciardo has a very lucrative deal with Renault and would certainly have to take a pay cut to join Ferrari based on the deal they offered 4-time World Champ Sebastian Vettel. For Ricciardo that may not be an issue though if he desires the ability to win over lining his pockets further.
Toss in the face Ricciardo has Italian heritage and maybe, just maybe we’ll see him in red next season.
