Daniel Ricciardo: Alpha Tauri driver will miss Italian Grand Prix because of broken hand
- Published
Daniel Ricciardo had to be replaced by Red Bull reserve driver Liam Lawson for the rest of the Dutch Grand Prix weekend
Daniel Ricciardo will miss the Italian Grand Prix as a result of the broken hand he sustained in an accident at Zandvoort on Friday.
Australian Ricciardo crashed his Alpha Tauri at the banked Hugenholz corner during the second practice session for the Dutch Grand Prix.
Red Bull team boss Christian Horner said Ricciardo had an operation on Sunday to insert screws into the bone.
"It was a fairly straightforward procedure," Horner said.
"Now it's all about recovery. For a normal human being that would be a couple of months. For a grand prix driver, it's usually much shorter.
"We need to see how the recovery goes but certainly not Italy."
On Sunday, Ricciardo posted an update, external on his Instagram account from his hospital bed in Barcelona, having been ruled out of race action.
"Had surgery this morning, got my first bit of metal work so that's pretty cool," he wrote.
"Big thanks to everyone who reached out and kept my spirits up. This ain't a setback, just all part of the comeback."
Ricciardo will be replaced again next weekend at Monza by New Zealander Liam Lawson, who was drafted in at Zandvoort on Saturday and finished 13th on Sunday.
The 34-year-old Ricciardo returned to the grid in July as a replacement for Dutchman Nyck de Vries, who was dropped by Alpha Tauri following a disappointing run of results.
Although broken bones typically take about six weeks to heal, F1 drivers are renowned for their determination to race as soon as possible after injury.
At the start of this season, Aston Martin driver Lance Stroll raced in the Bahrain Grand Prix just 12 days after receiving medical treatment for a total of four fractures in his hands, wrists and feet.
Last year, Alex Albon raced for Williams in Singapore three weeks after an operation to remove his appendix.
And in 2021, Fernando Alonso took part in pre-season testing a month after breaking his jaw in a cycling accident. The two-time champion raced for Alpine with two metal plates in his jaw for the entire season.
On that basis, Ricciardo may well try to return in time for this year's Singapore race on 15-17 September. It is followed a week later by the Japanese Grand Prix.