Daniel Ricciardo’s exit was announced after the Singapore GP. But there were a lot of questions about why didn’t Red Bull or Ricciardo make an official announcement that weekend itself. Alex Jacques and David Coulthard discussed the same.
Coulthard on the Formula for Success podcast mentioned that Ricciardo reportedly knew about Singapore being his last race for a few weeks. The Honey Badger was given the opportunity by the team to announce it but he refused to.
Coulthard asked Jacques why he didn’t announce it beforehand. The F1TV commentator explained how no drivers wanted to go mid-season, and unlike the British driver’s retirement, Ricciardo wasn’t at peace with the exit, sneaking in the possibility of him being in denial.
Explaining the second scenario, Jacques pointed out how the RB has traditionally done well around Singapore, and Ricciardo hoped to do well to buy himself more time on the team. He stated that the 35-year-old was perhaps hoping for a mega result to retain his seat and buy him some more time.
Jacques pointed at how Ricciardo’s mood went down the cliff after the qualifying as he exited in Q1. That was when the Aussie knew that he was done. Jacques added, “I don’t think he wanted to fully give up even though he’d been told what the plan was. Because there’s some wiggle room with the hierarchy there [at Red Bull].”
“Could just be he didn’t want to admit it he was done.”, he said.
Regardless, Ricciardo’s choice to not make it official in Singapore, be it for whatever reason, left a stain on Red Bull for not giving him a proper send-off. However, the Aussie’s post-race actions of sitting in the car, sobbing during the interview, and the grand welcome to the hospitality area gave away that he would be leaving the team.
What’s next for Ricciardo? NASCAR, IndyCar, or a TV show host
Sauber is the only F1 seat available for the 2025 season and Valtteri Bottas reportedly has a handshake deal with the Hinwil outfit for the same. Ricciardo was asked about the prospects of him racing in American motorsports since he’s very popular in the US.
Ricciardo suggested that IndyCar scares him so he won’t be doing that. Although he loves NASCAR, the Aussie isn’t sure if other motorsports will be able to give him the same satisfaction as F1 did. Hence, he is still making up his mind about the future.
Coulthard, however, presented an amazing proposition for Ricciardo. He said, “I definitely see him being an asset, whether he’d want to be, but he could definitely be an asset from a media point of view, you know, working in media and all those commercial opportunities.”
Jacques supported Coulthard’s notion suggesting that the F1 media world could be perfect for Ricciardo. But the Aussie may try something different before making his way back to the F1 paddock.
