Ricciardo F1 career unfinished as opportunities prepare to open
Ricciardo F1 career unfinished as opportunities prepare to open
Despite the all-round doom and gloom in Singapore surrounding Daniel Ricciardo, there was reason to believe that the Aussie's career in Formula 1 might not quite be over...yet.
Newsflash, it was not because of his performance in the Singapore Grand Prix. After a disastrous qualifying session on Saturday, Ricciardo's woes continued into the race, finishing well down the order in P18 and once again behind team-mate Yuki Tsunoda.
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Getting that fastest lap in Singapore did not move the needle in any way in terms of keeping him onboard, either. Any F1 driver with a set of new slicks and low fuel can look like Michael Schumacher playing on easy mode.
Instead, it was off the track where the hopes were perhaps ignited after the race – and in general throughout the weekend - as rumors grew into worst-kept secrets that from the next race at the United States, Ricciardo was going to be replaced by Liam Lawson in seemingly a very cut-throat move by Red Bull.
It’s hard to recall such a unanimous outpouring of sadness one driver’s departure can have on the paddock and fans. For instance, Kimi Raikkonen and Fernando Alonso were both given fitting send-offs as world champions and many were rightly sad to see them depart – Alonso has since returned of course but that’s beside the point.
But 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. The 35-year-old is however extremely popular. 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.
Teams looking for a sponsorship boost will benefit from signing Ricciardo. The talent on the track may not be as highly tuned as it once was but his marketing capabilities are still up there with the best.
That may be a crude way of looking at why Ricciardo isn’t done on the grid yet, but it is an unavoidable part of F1. Even now there are drivers on the grid who are there purely because of the revenue stream they can bring to teams.
It's unfair to relegate to Ricciardo as a cheeky-chappy Grade A pay-driver though, because he doesn’t need to prove his worth as an F1 star. Granted, his McLaren move was a disaster, and it’s not worked out at RB this season. This offers evidence that his best days are done but it’s three strikes and out, right?
Perhaps there is still a car/team that will fit him better even if not right now. 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.
READ MORE: Ricciardo discusses move to US racing series after 'last F1 race'
Defeating Vettel in his Red Bull backyard
Heading into the 2014 season, Sebastian Vettel was unstoppable – quite literally. He had just won the last nine races of the 2013 campaign to win his fourth straight world championship.
F1 though almost changed overnight during the intervening winter though as the hybrid rules came into effect as Hamilton and Nico Rosberg drove off into the distance and staged their own world championship for the next three years.
What many didn’t expect to happen in 2014 was for Vettel to even lose out to his team-mate. Ricciardo replaced another highly respected Australian in Mark Webber, but as the only driver not driving for Mercedes to win a grand prix that year (three of them) he trounced the German to the point he effectively kicked him out of the door to join Ferrari.
Handing Verstappen a rare F1 loss
Toughest job in F1 right now? Being Max Verstappen’s team-mate. Granted you have a high chance of driving high performing machinery that on a given weekend can give you the keys to victory, but in general you are on a hiding to nothing. Just ask Sergio Perez, Alex Albon, Pierre Gasly and Carlos Sainz.
Yet in 2017, and the Dutchman’s first full season with Red Bull, Ricciardo comfortably got the job done. Consistent podiums throughout the season won over despite Verstappen winning more races as the Australian still finished fifth in the championship and 32 points ahead of Verstappen having triumphed in Azerbaijan. It remains Verstappen’s only season defeat by a team-mate.
Monaco redemption
After the injustice of a botched pit-stop around Monte Carlo robbed Ricciardo of a deserved win in 2016, his 2018 victory around the tight and twisty streets was a feather in the cap for any world class driver.
Having taken pole position, he looked well set for victory already on a track where it is almost impossible to pass. But fate tried to deny him again, as a power unit problem robbed him of around 25 percent of his engine performance forcing himself to heavily defend Vettel for two thirds of the race.
The pressure mounted but Ricciardo kept his cool to take a highly popular victory – before belly flopping into the Red Bull energy station pool to celebrate afterwards.
Exceeding Renault expectations
Ditching Red Bull for Renault was a career gamble that ultimately proved a bust for Ricciardo but his stock crucially remained high during his two years at the team.
Then Renault boss Cyril Abiteboul wasn’t high on Renault’s 2020 hopes following an utterly forgettable 2019 season. He even had a bet with Ricciardo that he would get a tattoo done if the Australian could finish on the podium that year. Of course, Ricciardo went on to achieve it not just once, but twice!
Third place finishes at the Nurburgring and Imola late in the season did the trick and eventually Abiteboul stuck to his word. What tattoo did Ricciardo choose for him? A honey badger of course!
McLaren’s magnificent Monza
You can almost count Ricciardo’s McLaren highlights in two years with the team on one hand – perhaps one finger. But what a moment it was.
Struggling all of the 2021 season with the car as Lando Norris drove rings around him, it was tough seeing Ricciardo properly struggle with a car for perhaps the first time in his career. By the Italian Grand Prix, Norris had three podiums and Ricciardo could barely crack the top five.
But as chaos played out in Monza, with title contenders Verstappen and Hamilton taking each other out, Ricciardo came up clutch to lead home a McLaren one-two to take what looks like being his final grand prix win on arguably the best podium of the season that overlooks the historic Monza track to thousands of tifosi.
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F1 Race Calendar 2024
-
GP JAPAN
5 - 7 Apr
Max Verstappen
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GP CHINA
19 - 21 Apr
Max Verstappen
-
GP USA
3 - 5 May
Lando Norris
-
GP ITALY
17 - 19 May
Max Verstappen
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GP MONACO
24 - 26 May
Charles Leclerc
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GP CANADA
7 - 9 Jun
Max Verstappen
-
GP SPAIN
21 - 23 Jun
Max Verstappen
-
GP AUSTRIA
28 - 30 Jun
George Russell
-
GP GREAT BRITAIN
5 - 7 Jul
Lewis Hamilton
-
GP HUNGARY
19 - 21 Jul
Oscar Piastri
-
GP BELGIUM
26 - 28 Jul
Lewis Hamilton
-
GP NETHERLANDS
23 - 25 Aug
Lando Norris
-
GP ITALY
30 Aug - 1 Sep
Charles Leclerc
-
GP AZERBAIJAN
13 - 15 Sep
Oscar Piastri
-
GP SINGAPORE
20 - 22 Sep
Lando Norris
- GP USA 18 - 20 Oct
- GP MEXICO 25 - 27 Oct
- GP BRAZIL 1 - 3 Nov
- GP USA 22 - 24 Nov
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Franco Alejandro Colapinto
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Oliver Bearman
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- AWS Grand Prix du Canada 2024
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- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
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- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
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