Daniel Ricciardo's former teammate, Max Verstappen is among the first to welcome the Australian back to the grid, whilst sympathising with countryman de Vries.

The Dutchman was sitting just a couple of feet away from the Australian at today's FIA press conference as Ricciardo was seen in his new team colours for the first time.

"I spoke already quite a bit with Daniel last week," Verstappen told reporters. "I could see he was very excited, also after driving our car.

"Of course, it's great to have Daniel back on the grid, within the family," he added. "On the other side I'm also good friends with Nyck, so it's sad to see him go. But unfortunately that's how this world works. I don't think there are any hard feelings, that's just how it goes. You have to move on, there are a lot of other opportunities out there.

"I'm sure everyone will land back on their feet like normal and you move on. Now the opportunity's here with Daniel again, he had his little reset, so I think he's ready to go again."

Before the Australian has even turned a wheel for AlphaTauri there is already mounting speculation over whether he will rekindle his partnership with Verstappen at Red Bull.

"I never actually wanted him to leave," laughed the two-time world champion. "I mean, all of these things, we know that we get on very well.

"If Daniel does well where he is now, then of course you have the opportunity to go back up, right? So, it's all open to be honest."

Asked about his countryman, de Vries, Verstappen said: "I think we all know that Nyck is an incredible driver, he's shown that in every single category. I think these new generation of cars, when you're a rookie, it doesn't matter what age you are or whatever, they are quite difficult, I think, to get on top of, plus the car probably is not the most competitive, which all made it a bit harder.

"You just sometimes need these one or two moments where you shine, where you maybe get a point or two points, and these kind of moments didn't happen. Then the team wanted to change something and that's also part of F1.

"I know that he has a lot of opportunities, I spoke to him also last week, we saw each other, and he will definitely find his feet again with a great team somewhere in a great championship. I don't think it actually is the end of the world."

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