A retirement without resentment
Daniel Ricciardo returns to talk about his sensational farewell to Formula 1, which took place in a completely unusual way, without special parades or even a formal announcement that the 2024 Singapore GP – which wasn’t even the final race of the season – would be the last of his career. The strong Australian driver, who certainly left a mark in the GP paddock regardless of his victories, bears no resentment and, in fact, in hindsight wanted to thank Red Bull for that dismissal with immediate effect – the second in two championships, given that at the end of 2022 he had already left the McLaren seat to Oscar Piastri despite having another year on his contract – which helped him make a decision, that of retirement, which would otherwise have been very difficult to reach on his own.
Daniel Ricciardo speaks
The 36-year-old Australian shared his emotions about it during the Drive podcast, interviewed by Ford CEO Jim Farley: “In the end they fired me, that was the reality of the facts at that moment (after the 2024 Singapore GP, ed.). And I believe that, all things considered, I was fired twice in the last two years I raced in Formula 1. It had drained me, I put my whole soul into it and I was exhausted. Looking back, however, I am grateful to Red Bull for making the decision for me. Otherwise, I think it would have been very difficult for me to say on my own ‘Okay, it’s over’. Instead, in that case, I think I realized I was done with racing because I knew it had become difficult for me to perform at the level I could have. For some reason I lost something, and it’s okay to admit it”.
Read more Jack Doohan returns to racing: debut soon in the European Le Mans Series
“There are people who love you and will keep telling you that you’re great and that you can do it – he adds – but as much as you love them back, you just have to close the door, make that decision yourself and be truly honest with yourself. If I had reached the end of last year, I think I would have still had many of these thoughts and I would have had that inner dialogue, because I knew it was becoming harder and that I would have to dig really deep to get a result I was proud of. You always want to believe that everyone is looking out for you, and they probably still are, but they don’t know what it’s like to be you and to be in your situation”. “Last year, after retiring, I gave myself a lot of time to reflect and come to terms with my career”, concluded Daniel Ricciardo, now a Ford brand ambassador.
Read more Vettel’s new challenge: he will run the London Marathon
