Brown: Ricciardo 'capable of winning title immediately'

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McLaren boss Zak Brown believes 2021 recruit Daniel Ricciardo will be capable of fighting for the world championship "immediately".

Ricciardo's move to the Woking-based outfit was announced last week after among the raft of changes that will sweep through F1 at the end of the season.

The Aussie, who almost signed for McLaren during the summer of 2018 before he committed to Renault for 2019, will replace Ferrari-bound Carlos Sainz and is expected to form with young gun Lando Norris one of the most exciting line-ups on the grid in 2021.

Ricciardo's last throw of the dice for a title?

While few are anticipating Ricciardo fighting for the title at the outset, but a bold Brown says the 30-year-old can put himself in the mix with the right equipment at his disposal.

"I think in the right car Daniel is capable of winning a championship immediately," Brown told Sky Sports F1.

"He’s extremely marketable from a commercial standpoint, he’s a very exciting driver. I think the combination of he and Lando will be awesome, and they’ll be kind of the fan favourites, on and off the track."

Brown says that having a seven-time race winner in McLaren's line-up is a tremendous asset and one which bookends the many positive staff changes implemented by the team in the past year.

"We’re kind of on this road to recovery, and last year was a big step forward," explained the McLaren boss. "With that you need to have the best of everything if you can get it.

"I think in a relative short period of time Andreas [Seidl] as our team principal has been a great addition to our team, James Key has started, then a lot of people you don’t see behind the scenes, who ultimately contribute to a race team being successful.

"We restructured the entire leadership team, that took some time, they are now all in place. Andreas really has the race team where he wants it.

"Then of course you want to have two great drivers, which we currently have today, but to be able to have a seven-time winner, someone that you know is the absolute benchmark, is great for the team.

"And it also gives Lando a chance to step up and give us a chance to see Lando in action against a seven-time winner."

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.