Guenther Steiner Reveals Daniel Ricciardo's Salary Demands Were Too Steep For Haas F1 Team
Haas team principal Guenther Steiner has revealed the team could not afford Daniel Ricciardo for a permanent seat on the team for the 2023 season.
In the world of F1, team principals and drivers constantly juggle the challenge of finding the right combination of talent, experience, and chemistry to achieve success. One team that has recently been in the spotlight is Haas, and their pursuit of Daniel Ricciardo in the 2022 season.
As the season progressed, reports surfaced that Haas team principal Guenther Steiner was eyeing a shakeup of his driver pairing for the 2023 season. Australian driver Ricciardo, was identified as a primary target for the team, after it was confirmed that he and McLaren were parting ways at the end of the 2022 season.
In the fifth season of the popular Netflix documentary series, Drive to Survive, which will be released on Friday 24 February 2023 it is set to be revealed that Kevin Magnussen was also interested by the idea of having Ricciardo as a teammate. However, as the episode unfolds, it becomes clear that Ricciardo's salary demands were too high for Haas to afford.
During a conversation with Steiner, the Danish driver asks about the possibility of Ricciardo joining the team for the 2023 season. However, Steiner's response was immediate and clear, the team principal said:
"We can't afford him, Kevin. He wants 10 f***ing million. Minimum!"
The conversation continued between the two, discussing who would replace Mick Schumacher after it became clear that the young German driver's position at Haas was untenable. Schumacher had several crashes during the season, increasing pressure on Steiner to find a replacement.
In the 'Like Father Like Son' episode of Drive To Survive, a phone conversation between Steiner and team owner Gene Haas reveals Schumacher's dismissal and plans for his replacement. Magnussen suggests Nico Hulkenberg as a replacement, who was eventually recruited as his partner for the upcoming season.