Daniel Ricciardo's Resurgence in Formula 1
As it turns out, his father, Joe, was born in Ficarra – a city in Sicily and moved to Australia when he was young. Moreover, his mother, Grace, was also born in Australia but has Italian roots, owing to her family tracing back to Calabria. daniel ricciardo max verstappen Alonso, and soon Hamilton, evidence that even into your 40s you can still maintain a competitive edge. If you need reminding of what Ricciardo is truly capable of here are five of his greatest moments that underline the talent within.
Ricciardo and his race engineer Pierre Hamelin were very pleased with the results, and rightly so! The duo was spotted enjoying a funny yet encouraging talk after the qualifying results. He shared his thoughts candidly, acknowledging his desire to win but emphasizing that his happiness and definition of success in this second phase of his career are not solely reliant on victories. Ricciardo made a bold decision at the end of 2018—leaving the highly competitive Red Bull to join Renault, a midfield team at the time. It shocked many fans, but Ricciardo believed in the long-term potential of Renault.
Joining McLaren then proved to be another short-lived spell as the Woking outfit ultimately dropped Ricciardo 18 months into a three-year contract in August 2022. The papaya squad decided to move on and sign Oscar Piastri to replace his compatriot from the 2023 season. Multiple factors played into Ricciardo’s decision, including the fallout of his 2018 Azerbaijan GP crash with Verstappen plus concerns regarding Red Bull’s future engine partnership with Honda. But the Australian’s decision to walk away from Milton Keynes proved to be an error.
It’s therefore likely to be the end of Ricciardo’s F1 career, which began in 2011 and has twice seen the 35-year-old finish third in the championship - his best result. Norris made light work of passing Leclerc come the restart and was soon on McLaren’s radio offering to work as Ricciardo’s wingman rather than fight his teammate for the race win. The decision paid off as McLaren registered a one-two as Ricciardo led Norris home by 1.747s. Verstappen’s refusal to yield meant he rode the sausage kerb, while the contact between his front-right tyre and Hamilton’s rear-left flicked the Dutchman’s Red Bull onto the Halo of the Briton’s Mercedes. But redemption in the Principality at the 2018 Monaco Grand Prix would be Ricciardo’s final of seven wins for Red Bull. He also did not win another race until the 2021 Italian Grand Prix at Monza when Ricciardo secured McLaren’s first victory since the 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix.
For the most part of their two years together, the drivers have remained friendly and appear to possess the most relaxed and fun-loving partnership on the grid. Ricciardo and Verstappen were battling for position throughout the last race in Azerbaijan with the Australian just behind his team-mate on Lap 40 after being caught out by the overcut. The 34-year-old will start the Sprint from the second row and potentially aim for a podium finish.
"I look at me a year ago, I wasn't sure if I would ever race an F1 car again, and a year later, here I am. "For sure, there's no real criteria at the moment, but I need to show something for sure. But also for next year and beyond, there's no guarantees - probably ever - with this sport. "Of course that was my wish but you also need to be realistic at some point and say 'OK, if I want to get back to a Red Bull seat then it's going to take a bit of a process or a path'. This for me is the best path at the moment.
Ricciardo finished fourth again at the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix after a wrong strategy meant he finished fourth again. He managed four fastest laps for the season, in Australia, China, Spain and Hungary and finished the season sixth in the World Drivers' Championship with 170 points. Ricciardo at the 2017 Malaysian Grand PrixRicciardo qualified 10th in Australia after spinning into the tyre barrier in Q3. He incurred a five-place grid penalty due to an unscheduled gearbox change as a result of the crash. A gearbox sensor issue prevented him from taking the start and when he did get going, two laps down, a sudden fuel pressure problem ended his race after 25 laps.
He left a team on the rise, and seven Grand Prix victories, behind to bet on Renault. But following two seasons and just a pair of podiums with Renault Ricciardo was on the move again, this time to McLaren. The move appears to be the final act of Ricciardo's F1 career as a driver, with the 35-year-old having claimed eight victories in 257 grand prix starts across 14 seasons.
It was recently confirmed Ricciardo will be staying with RB for the remainder of the season, missing out on Red Bull promotion for now, but also avoiding an early replacement by reserve driver Liam Lawson who looks likely to make the grid in 2025. Ricciardo has first-hand experience with Red Bull's pressure cooker alongside Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen. And given the travails of those who tried to replace him, the Australian's original Red Bull stint – including seven of his eight grand prix wins – looks ever more impressive in hindsight. "In that moment I was heated. I was getting quite heated moments in my brain but I still let him through a lap or half a lap later. In the end, the team thought he had more chance and I respect that." Coming into this season, the Japanese driver stated he wanted to learn from his more experienced team-mate, but Tsunoda admitted he "probably showed the opposite" in Bahrain. It’s therefore likely to be the end of Ricciardo’s F1 career, which began in 2011 and has twice seen the 35-year-old finish third in the championship – his best result.
A belief that Red Bull rallied around Verstappen would help tempt Ricciardo to leave the team when his contract expired at the end of 2018. But while Red Bull’s mechanics greeted Ricciardo to remove his inters, they were not ready with his slick tyres. Their pit crew eventually scurried out of the garage with new tyres, but the damage was done as Ricciardo emerged back on the track right behind Hamilton again. Conditions improving changed the face of the race, however, as Red Bull called Ricciardo in to trade his full wets for Pirelli’s intermediate tyres. Mercedes took advantage of the call to keep Hamilton on full wets after gaining the race lead around Monte Carlo’s narrow streets.
Liam Lawson is expected to replace Daniel RicciardoBut Ricciardo isn’t even a world champion and has never been a serious title contender despite earning eight grand prix wins during an excellent career. This may not matter when that is hidden by a crash helmet, steering wheel and 19 other cars, but it can count for a lot. Daniel Ricciardo also tried retiring last year but failed in an interview with Sky Sports. In this year’s interview, the Australian said he has been enjoying his time at the team and has many good memories from his F1 career, including his close friendship with Max Verstappen.