Daniel Ricciardo Draws Inspiration From Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso to Keep Faith in Himself

Daniel Ricciardo Cites Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso’s Exploits at This Age to Keep Faith in Himself

Daniel Ricciardo is set to stay at RB for the rest of the season, with Red Bull deciding to keep Sergio Perez for the remaining 10 races. But for 2025, Ricciardo does not have a seat, and he will need to impress more than ever before, to ensure he lands a place on the grid. Many believe that the 35-year-old is past his prime. However, Ricciardo uses Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso’s age as examples to insist he has a lot more to give.

“They [Hamilton and Alonso] have proven you can still do it at an older age,” said Ricciardo as quoted by Motorsport.

Ricciardo took a moment to highlight his positives from the 2024 season. He believed he performed well, and the same moments put him in line to replace Perez, a move that was reported to be complete until Liberty Media intervened.

Ricciardo worked hard. But fate wasn’t kind to him. He got back into F1 midway into the 2023 season after six months without a seat. Unfortunately, an arm injury sidelined him for several weeks. As such, he didn’t get enough time to show Red Bull that he had what it took to drive for them.

However, Ricciardo’s performances have not been consistently good. The honey badger has improved since the season started, but some issues need addressing before he has a solid claim at the seat of a top team.

Inconsistency costing Ricciardo dearly

The main difference between Hamilton Alonso, and Ricciardo is that the former two have been consistent for almost two decades. Ricciardo has failed in that respect since leaving Red Bull for the first time in 2019.

Since rejoining Red Bull’s sister team (RB), Ricciardo has not had a lot of good performances. Not being able to put his car into the points consistently, has been a failure, and Yuki Tsunoda (his teammate) has outperformed him for the biggest part this season.

Ricciardo knows what he has to improve on. He doesn’t think his form has been that bad, and if he succeeds in maintaining consistency, he is sure he can be on the grid for years to come.

Post Edited By: Somin Bhattacharjee
Daniel Ricciardo Fernando Alonso Lewis Hamilton

About the author

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Naman Gopal Srivastava

Naman is an F1 writer at The SportsRush. Initially a football fanatic who worships Puyol and Leo Messi, Naman soon fell in love with the world of F1 upon reading about Jim Clarke. While the current era drivers do fascinate him, Naman still chooses to idolize Clarke and Ayrton Senna. When he is not busy watching the highlights of some of the greatest races of his idols, Naman can be found scribbling little snippets in his diary of poems or out in the town, exploring new places to eat.

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