Daniel Ricciardo believes the appearance of Formula 1’s feeder categories on the support bill for the Australian Grand Prix is a positive.
It was this morning revealed by Speedcafe.com that the 2023 event will be held from March 30-April 2.
That will see Australia host Round 3 of the Formula 1 world championship, once the full calendar is released in October, and will be the first time Formula 2 and Formula 3 have visited Albert Park.
While popular with category organisers, the addition of the junior categories also found support with Ricciardo.
“I love it,” the Australian told Speedcafe.com.
“I love the fact that F2, F3 are getting so much exposure now, and I know F1 will post it on their channels as well.
“It’s a pretty exciting time to be a young driver.
“And I also love that they’re getting out of Europe and tagging on to some of our international races, that’s pretty special.
“You know, it absolutely prepares them better for it, it prepares them a little bit more to find out what’s potentially coming in Formula 1.
“When I got into F1, it was… you just couldn’t really prepare.
“Even though I was reserve driver, so I got an idea of how it works, but you just can’t prepare for the schedule and attention, all that.
“So I think already kind of shining a bit of a spotlight on these categories, it can prepare them.
“And I know, being an Aussie, racing in Albert Park, that’s pretty awesome, so I was very happy to hear that news.”
The 33-year-old, made his F1 debut midway through the 2011 season, making the final step onto the grid at a time when there was not a single clear pathway.
While some graduated from regional Formula 3 competitions into the GP2 Series and then F1, Ricciardo took a different route.
The West Aussie raced in Formula Renault 2.0 before progressing to Formula Renault 3.5 and ultimately Formula 1, a path preferred by Red Bull at the time given its engine partnership with the French auto maker.
In recent years, the pathway has been more streamlined, and while other categories exist that could move a driver towards the sport’s pinnacle, they all tend to converge at Formula 2, if not Formula 3.
It makes the two categories critical for a young driver looking at Formula 1 as their destination, and therefore those competing in it now are likely to be the sport’s stars in the years ahead.
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