Daniel Ricciardo is unlikely to be on the grid when Formula 1 kicks off its 2023 campaign in Bahrain next March, but the Aussie says he's working on a plan to get back to the front and win once again in F1.
Ricciardo will part ways with McLaren at the end of the season and with no opportunities to remain with a front-running or top midfield outfit next year, the 33-year-old will likely spend 12 months on the sidelines.
However, at COTA on Thursday when queried on his future, Ricciardo alluded to a plan that will keep him connected to F1 in some capacity before a full-time return to the fray in 2024.
"You will see me around," the eight-time Grand Prix winner said. "It's going to look different for me, but there is still very much still a plan in place.
"So, it's not that I am checking out and saying 'see you later'; it’s far from that.
"I'm just putting in a plan to honestly try to get me back to the front of the grid and win races and do all the stuff I know I can do."
In the interim, with four races remaining on the 2022 docket, Ricciardo is determined to close his disappointing chapter with McLaren on a high, starting this weekend in Austin at The Circuit of the Americas, one of his favourite venues.
"I feel like… I think even Japan was a relatively strong weekend," he said. "It didn't show on paper, but there were a lot of good things that I think we found that came from the weekend, personally.
"I'm excited for the last four [races], I mean I'm excited for this track. I find that I always get two-tenths extra here just being in Texas.
"So, let's see. But [I'm] happy, excited, pumped, motivated, fired up."
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