“I’ve never been asked that question” – Daniel Ricciardo speaks about his journey in Formula 1 so far, and what motivates him to continue in the sport.
There have been few F1 drivers this century who would consider themselves unfortunate to not win the world title. The likes of Rubens Barichello and Felipe Massa could have done it, the same goes for Daniel Ricciardo.
Ricciardo has been one of the finest drivers in the grid over the past decade, but not ultimately been better than most, not all. Now at McLaren, he can look to win podiums, maybe even races, but a world title seems a distant dream. When asked if he continues to race despite being aware of this, he had this to say:
“I’ve never been asked that question because the truth is I race because that is what I want to do. I want to be world champion and I’ve never said I race to make up numbers. I think I would still do it because you still have the chance to win races and still have some highs for sure.
“But I think if it ended for me today, obviously I’m not world champion, I’d still look back on this journey and be extremely grateful for it. I’ve had some amazing experiences, many highs and I think just life experience as well. Being able to travel the world and do what we do.
“So yes, the big trophy is why we do it but we’ve taken so much more from it on our way to trying to get there and even if we don’t get there, I think we still have a lot of fulfillment.
“I guess the answer is I’d still do it.”
Also read “Bullies are the weak ones”– Daniel Ricciardo helps a mom of a bullied child who supports McLaren
