Ricciardo distances himself from Red Bull move

Daniel Ricciardo on Thursday distanced himself from speculation of a potential move to Red Bull in 2025, saying he was only focused on one race at a time.

The Australian has been tipped to replace Sergio Perez, but has had a poor start to the season with Red Bull's junior team RB, formerly AlphaTauri, finishing 13th in Bahrain and 16th in Saudi Arabia.

"I don't buy into any of the stories, if you will," he said in Melbourne about being linked to Red Bull, where he raced from 2014 to 2018.

"I think it's always our objective to do the best we can. And I think whatever happens will happen or can happen.

"But for us, my objective is to drive this car as good as I can. I think now, getting back into a car, I'm definitely not looking too far ahead. So am I thinking about the Red Bull seat that you speak of? No."

Ricciardo, 34, replaced Nyck de Vries at AlphaTauri in the middle of last season.

Eight-time grand prix winner Ricciardo parted company with McLaren at the end of 2022, but remained part of the F1 scene as Red Bull's reserve driver.