Under the lights of Marina Bay, Daniel Ricciardo lingered in his cockpit a little longer at Parc Fermé after the Grand Prix. Rumours surrounding his exit from Formula 1 had been brewing since the beginning of the Singapore GP weekend, but even without official confirmation, his departure seemed imminent.
“The cockpit is something that I got very used to for many years, and I just wanted to savour the moment,” said the Australian driver. On Thursday, it was announced that he would be replaced by fellow antipodean Liam Lawson for the rest of the 2024 season.
Ricciardo’s tenure at Red Bull’s RB team may not have delivered the fairytale he may have hoped for, but to define him by merely his recent results on track would be to reduce the Perth native, overlooking the depth of his contribution to the sport.
Early Days and Rising Star
The Australian began his F1 career in 2011, fresh-faced at HRT, and soon thereafter, he joined Red Bull’s sister team, Toro Rosso. In 2014, he jumped into the senior Red Bull seat after compatriot Mark Webber announced his departure.
Quickly, Ricciardo established himself as more than just Sebastian Vettel’s understudy. His dive-bombs, late-braking maneuvers, and daring overtakes made him one of the most exciting talents to grace the grid. He didn’t just keep pace with his multiple world-title-winning teammate; he outperformed him, finishing that year with three race wins and a third-place finish in the Drivers’ Championship.
Facing Challenges
As Red Bull’s dominance began to wane in the face of Mercedes’ supremacy, cracks started to appear. The car struggled to deliver consistently. Despite a few more seasons, a few more victories, including his iconic triumph at Monaco in 2018, the emergence of a prodigy named Max Verstappen soon shifted the team’s dynamic. The young gun’s rapid rise and burgeoning potential led Red Bull to focus on the Dutchman, leaving Ricciardo feeling increasingly cast in a supporting role.
A Bold Move To Renault
Ricciardo, however, did not accept it. He made a bold decision to leave the Milton-Keynes-based team for Renault—a move that shocked the paddock and those in Red Bull itself. As team boss Christian Horner claimed he was “running away from a fight” with the younger, improving Verstappen, Ricciardo framed it differently. He sought “a fresh and new challenge.”
The Australian’s move to Renault was fueled by the promise of being the team leader and reigniting both his and the Enstone outfit’s championship hopes. His patience was tested early on due to an underperforming car. By 2020, flashes of brilliance emerged, with Ricciardo finishing on the podium twice. However, the inconsistencies and unreliabilities proved too great.
The McLaren Chapter
McLaren was seen as his chance to re-establish himself at the front of the grid. Partnered with Lando Norris, Ricciardo’s move to Woking felt like a fresh start, especially as the team was climbing back to competitiveness. But the reality was far harsher.
Ricciardo’s driving style clashed with the peculiar characteristics of McLaren’s car, leading to inconsistent performances. The more he tried to adjust his driving to suit the car, the harder it became to keep pace. There were moments of brilliance, none more so than his victory at Monza in 2021, where he led from start to finish, securing McLaren’s first win in nearly a decade—a moment that seemed to scream, “he’s back.” Yet the season as a whole painted a different picture. He struggled to match Norris’s pace, and despite multiple attempts to regain his form, momentum faltered. Every effort was made, but none proved successful, and eventually Ricciardo was replaced by fellow Australian Oscar Piastri.
A Return to The Red Bull Family
After departing McLaren, he took a reserve role at Red Bull in 2024. Supported by Horner, it was a homecoming of sorts, back to the team where he had first stepped foot on the podium. It was an opportunity to maintain a connection to the sport while removing himself from the full-time racing intensity. Following a Pirelli tire test at Silverstone with Red Bull, where he displayed a competitive pace near teammate Max Verstappen’s pole time, the eight-time Grand Prix champion heightened expectations—his performance strong enough to prompt his quick announcement as Nyck de Vries’s replacement at ten-Alpha Tauri.
Up until September of this year, he was rumored to replace Sergio Perez in the Red Bull seat, but the magic had already begun to fade. His struggles to adapt to the new generation of cars resurfaced. Despite scoring points in five races, Ricciardo was outperformed by teammate Yuki Tsunoda. His performance fell short of Red Bull’s expectations, and with a talented Liam Lawson waiting in the wings, the pressure to retain the talent within their junior program intensified, leaving the Australian feeling caught in the Red Bull merry-go-round.
The 35-year-old stated on social media, “It’ll always have its highs and lows, but it’s been fun, and truth be told, I wouldn’t change it.”
Eight wins, 32 podiums, and 1,329 points across 258 Grand Prix. Those are the stats. But Ricciardo has given so much more. A beloved personality in the paddock, his infectious smile, charisma, grace, and cheeky sense of humor have captivated fans and fellow competitors alike. His dive-bombs were daring, his overtakes thrilling, his shoeys memorable.
Formula 1 is ruthless. It waits for no one, no matter how talented or beloved they may be. Reviewing Ricciardo’s career feels like tracing the arc of a driver who’s always been the people’s champion, if not always the frontrunner, as though we are witnessing the closing act of a career that promised more silverware than it delivered. For fans, his departure leaves a bittersweet mark—an entertainer who, at his peak, was unrivaled in his ability to bring the sport to life. Yet, his iconic declaration, “I never left,” resonates deeply; for while he may step away from the grid, his essence remains etched in the sport.
This story was originally published on forbes.com and all figures are in USD.
