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Daniel Ricciardo believes that Sebastian Vettel’s departure from the sport coinciding with his own exit in 2022 did not create the same feeling. Speaking ahead of the 2024 Australian GP to The Age newspaper, the RB driver claimed he was not done with the sport despite the uncertainty of his future.
While the four-time world champion was given a farewell by the sport and the F1 fraternity in Abu Dhabi, Daniel Ricciardo also went into the 2022 season finale knowing he was not going to be on the grid in 2023. Reflecting upon that period, he felt the uncertainty that loomed over his future did not lead him to believe that it was the end of his F1 career.
A difficult season with McLaren in 2022 sent him into a downward spiral, where he wished for the season to end. Unlike his former Red Bull teammate who was far from his prime, the 34-year-old returned to his former team as a third driver and came back with its sister team in mid-2023 with a full-time seat.
Reflecting upon the period at McLaren and the 2022 season, Daniel Ricciardo said:
“Seb got the big goodbye he completely deserved, but I didn’t know at that stage if 2022 was the end or not for me too. At that moment it wasn’t something I cared too much about, mostly because I didn’t like the way my career had ended if that was it.
“It didn’t bother me I didn’t get the send-off Seb did, because deep down I don’t think I was done. I still believed I could change it, I just needed a chance to. From that mid-point of 2022 when I basically didn’t have a job and was unsure what I was going to do, I was almost wishing the races away, wanting the season to be done with.
Daniel Ricciardo admits underestimating the experience he brought to a team
Daniel Ricciardo claims he underestimated the value of the knowledge and experience that he brought to a team. After realizing his inputs had helped RB make improvements on the car, the Australian driver felt validated that his opinions were considered.
Enjoying the process of answering the team’s questions and giving inputs, the Aussie admits realizing his impact on atmosphere in a garage and the team at large. His inputs helped the team develop the car better in 2023, resulting in some solid points, including his own performance in Mexico which propelled them from last to eighth in the constructors championship.
Explaining the process of helping RB with their struggles in 2023, Daniel Ricciardo said:
“I’ve been in F1 a long time, driven a lot of cars, seen a lot of things. My knowledge, I probably underestimated that. The team was struggling a bit at the time, and I could see that my experience was helping. The way the team responded to what I had to say, the questions they asked, I grew to really enjoy that aspect of it.
“You realize with age that you have the power to change how a garage feels, how a team responds. There’s hundreds of people that work with these teams, but you’re one of the two people who the world watches to see how the team performs. We don’t just drive the car, we have the ability to alter the atmosphere in the room and that’s something I’m definitely more aware of.”
While his Saudi Arabian GP weekend performance has been heavily criticized, Daniel Ricciardo was positive of returning to his home race with an improved car when he spoke to Sportskeeda. The Australian driver claimed his team had found an issue with his car which made him look forward to better performances Melbourne onwards. The RB team are supposed to bring an improved and upgraded VCARB01 to the Australian GP.
