Dropped by McLaren in favour of compatriot Oscar Piastri, Ricciardo has not yet indicated if he is ready to ride off into the F1 sunset but showed he knows how to make an entrance decked out in a Stars and Stripes jacket, a cowboy hat, and accompanied by a guitar playing country singer as he made his way down an amused paddock.

"Did he come with a horse this morning? I thought that was photoshopped initially when I saw that," smiled AlphaTauri's Pierre Gasly during Thursday's press conferences. "I've never seen a horse inside an F1 paddock.

"That's the sort of thing that happens in America and I really enjoy it."

One of Formula One's more engaging personalities and popular drivers, Ricciardo said he planned the stunt to help brighten what is usually a quiet day in the paddock with no action on the track.

"(We thought) it will bring a little bit of extra atmosphere into the paddock," Ricciardo told Sky Sports F1. "As we know, Thursdays are kind of quiet.

"So it was cool. Really nice to do it.

"I mean, I was a little embarrassed at first but I was like ‘you know what, just have some fun’."