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McLaren driver Daniel Ricciardo recently stated he had no age in mind for his retirement from the sport. However, the Australian cited the brutality of the routine and the risk level which often acts as an indicator of retirement.
Speaking to Ariel Helwani in an online interview, the McLaren driver said:
“I guess I don’t have an age. I think it's... or I’ll probably know. Maybe it's like a lot of sports and MMA, the moment where you start maybe a little bit of hesitation or a bit of fear starts creeping in where you are not willing to take that same level of risk that you once were. Then that's the sign.”
The point Daniel Ricciardo conveys refers to the risk of danger involved in a sport, which several drivers prefer not to take as they progress with age and their personal lives. While F1 is currently safer, competition levels and swift changes in the drivers market are also forcing drivers into retirement.
Daniel Ricciardo's views on swift changes in the driver market reflect Nico Hulkenberg's comments
Explaining the motorsport environment, Daniel Ricciardo said:
“Especially in motor-racing, everything happens so fast, in split-second decisions that you can’t afford to be say one step behind anymore. Maybe, I will get to an age where that kicks in, or else maybe I’ll just get tired as well. Our calendar is so brutal that at some point I think I'm just gonna wanna take six months off and probably do nothing.”
The current 22-race calendar has been brutal on drivers and team personnel, especially the overseas triple header. Therefore, drivers often reach a stage in their lives where they choose to disengage from rigorous routines by either taking a sabbatical or retiring.
Global jet-setting, coupled with driving in the world's most excruciatingly competitive form of motorsport, can be a test for the best of drivers and world champions.
Watch Daniel Ricciardo talk about retirement from the 20:30 mark of the video below:
