‘Grateful that they made the decision for me’, Daniel Ricciardo reflects on F1 axing

Former F1 driver Daniel Ricciardo has reflected candidly on the rollercoaster journey that ultimately led to his axing from Racing Bulls and retirement from the sport, saying he was “grateful that they made the decision for me.”

Now an ambassador for the Blue Oval, Ricciardo opened up in an interview with Ford CEO Jim Farley, discussing the tumultuous period leading up to his emotional exit from Formula 1.

“I definitely had to try and understand a lot [in] the last 12 months about the career coming to an end, and its timing, because you’re not really going to get it back once it’s gone for the most part,” the Aussie explained.

“So 2022, I struggled a lot in my second year at McLaren. They let me go. So then 2023, I started without a seat and I was like, ‘Is this maybe it? Do I just call it now?’ But I knew there was still some burning desire in me.

“And that’s where I really needed to try and look at myself in the mirror, and was like, ‘OK, forget what the people say and what they want, what do you want?'”

Ricciardo made his F1 debut midway through 2011, stepping in for Narain Karthikeyan at backmarkers Hispania Racing, who had loaned him from Red Bull. In 2012, he moved up to Red Bull’s sister team, then known as Toro Rosso.

Outperforming the highly rated Jean-Éric Vergne across their two seasons as teammates earned Ricciardo a promotion to the championship-winning Red Bull Racing squad, where he partnered reigning four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel ahead of the 2014 regulation changes.

He went on to achieve eight Grand Prix victories and 32 podiums, rising to soaring popularity for his off-track personality as well as his on-track determination. However, his career decline began when he took the risk of leaving Red Bull for Renault in 2019, and it worsened during two difficult seasons with McLaren from 2021—despite the standout victory at Monza.

“I definitely had to try and understand a lot [in] the last 12 months about the career coming to an end, and its timing, because you’re not really going to get it back once it’s gone for the most part,” he explained.

“So 2022, I struggled a lot in my second year at McLaren. They let me go. So then 2023, I started without a seat and I was like, ‘Is this maybe it? Do I just call it now?’ But I knew there was still some burning desire in me.

“And that’s where I really needed to try and look at myself in the mirror, and was like, ‘OK, forget what the people say and what they want, what do you want?'”

“I tried to make it as personal as possible. There are still opinions, even if it’s your parents or whatever, but ultimately, I did my best to make sure that there was still that fire inside my gut,” said Ricciardo when asked whether that moment was a personal decision or one shaped by his inner circle.

It was with his former Faenza-based team—rebranded from Toro Rosso to AlphaTauri—that Ricciardo found his way back into Formula 1, replacing the beleaguered Nyck de Vries midway through the 2023 season.

“So, I got back into the seat halfway through the season. I got a drive, second or third race in, I broke my hand, and it was such a nothing accident, but I missed however many races.

“So that happened, and I was like, ‘Well, I’ve never really hurt myself racing all these years, and I have a silly crash, is this now a bit of a sign? Should I just quit while I’m ahead nearly?’

“And I was like, ‘No, there’s still unfinished business,’ and I pushed through it.”

Ricciardo returned after recovering from injury and remained with the team into 2024, by which point it had been rebranded again as Racing Bulls. However, his comeback lasted only until the Singapore Grand Prix, after which he was replaced by Liam Lawson.

“I lasted another year in F1, and then ultimately got let go. That was the reality at the time. But I think once that happened, I’d been let go twice in the last two years. It had also taken a lot out of me. I’d put a lot of my soul into it, and I did feel pretty exhausted by it. In reflection, I was grateful that they made the decision for me.”

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Written by

Jawad Yaqub

An eCommerce Specialist by day and reporting on F1 by night. Jawad is passionate about motorsport, having provided accredited F1 coverage for more than a decade. Live blogging (almost) every grand prix too since 2014, as well as articles on the Supercars Championship. Also keen on sustainability, photography, collecting vinyl, (trying to) expertly barbeque and learning to Dad.

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