Daniel Ricciardo's four-word message to Red Bull spotted on his F1 helmet at Spanish GP

Daniel Ricciardo has sent a defiant message to his critics with a hand-written message on his helmet at the Spanish Grand Prix.

He has already made one Formula 1 comeback but again Ricciardo finds himself fighting for his future in the sport. Strong results have been too few and far between for the Aussie since he was given a route back onto the grid with Red Bull's sister team RB.

With nine points to his name in 2024, the 34-year-old has fewer than half the number amassed by team-mate Yuki Tsunoda. And they were scored at just two race events of the nine held prior to this weekend's Spanish GP.

Tsunoda has already earned a new contract for next year but Ricciardo has more to prove if he is to keep hold of his seat. Reserve driver Liam Lawson, who impressed while filling in for the Aussie when he missed five races through injury last year, is chomping at the bit for his first full-time race seat.

The pressure is on, but Ricciardo remains up for the challenge. And he showed as much with a hand-written message on his helmet spotted before practice in Barcelona, which read: "Not without a fight."

Ricciardo secured his best Grand Prix result of the season so far last time out at the Canadian Grand Prix, where he finished eighth. He declared he is feeling much better about his car right now and hopes he will continue to be comfortable behind the wheel of the RB in Barcelona.

He said: "Canada, we started from Friday practice, we were on the front foot and we continued that all through the weekend. We hadn't had one of those weekends in a long time, or I hadn't, so it was nice just to start good and end good.

"The team's been great with updates, and I think the car has definitely made some steps forward. So I have confidence we can have more of those weekends in the next few and be there more consistently. So it was good for me, good for obviously the people who are pushing and know that I can do it. So yeah, personally as well, just to have a weekend like that, it was necessary, it was needed and it felt good for everyone."

Meanwhile, Lawson has made it clear he expects the get a seat for next season and has a clause in his reserve contract, which allows him to speak to other teams if he is not offered one with Red Bull. And he said he will exercise that option if he doesn't get what he wants.

The Kiwi said: "Obviously for me, the dream is to drive with Red Bull, and I've been with them now for more than five years. They're the most competitive team in Formula 1 right now, so if I could choose, I would drive for them. But my dream is to be in Formula 1, and if it can't be with them, then obviously, I need to try and make that happen with somebody else."