Daniel Ricciardo reacts to 'soft hands' Max Verstappen new race number

Red Bull has posted Daniel Ricciardo’s first comical reaction to "soft hands" Max Verstappen running the #3, which was formerly the Australian’s number.

Due to losing the world title to Lando Norris, Verstappen has had to relinquish the #1 he had been using since 2022, following his title triumph the year prior.

However, rather than return to the Dutchman’s traditional #33, he was granted permission by Ricciardo to take the #3, which was unavailable without the Australian’s consent.

With Ricciardo and Verstappen sharing a close bond, being given the #3 was no problem for the four-time world champion.

The #3 was seen on Verstappen’s car for the first time during last week’s five-day Barcelona test, having already been spotted on Red Bull clothing at the team’s launch of the RB22.

That was where Ricciardo saw it for the first time, with Red Bull posting footage of the Honey Badger and Verstappen greeting one another, before the latter showed off the #3 on his cap.

The clip posted by the Milton Keynes-based outfit showed Verstappen walking up behind Ricciardo and placing his hands on him, to which the 36-year-old replied: "Ah, I know those soft hands."

Red Bull boss Laurent Mekies was speaking to Ricciardo at the time and responded: "That’s a bit scary."

Verstappen then comically stated that he does "love a manicure, pedicure", before attention turned to the #3.

"Woah, this is the three," said Ricciardo, before continuing after checking out the design: "Ah, c’est magnifique!"