2024 Daniel Ricciardo

Although his second year there was much better - Ricciardo finished fifth in the championship with two podiums - the move to Renault will perhaps be his lasting legacy as it actually regressed his career instead of kicking it on. Ricciardo hoped that his move would be like that of Hamilton, who left the championship-winning McLaren for midfield Mercedes in 2013 before winning six titles at the Silver Arrows. But Ricciardo’s Renault stint was ultimately not like that at all, because the daniel ricciardo best moments team dropped to fifth in the 2019 standings while the Aussie finished ninth in the drivers’ championship. Departing McLaren after the 2022 season, Ricciardo was unable to find a permanent seat for 2023. Instead, he settled for a role as Red Bull’s third driver – which was basically a glorified PR stunt that featured no time behind the wheel. Halfway through the season though, Ricciardo returned to the track with Red Bull’s sister team AlphaTauri, replacing the struggling Nyck de Vries.

Reacting to qualifying in Montreal, Villeneuve insisted that Ricciardo needs to maintain Saturday's level of performance to prove he deserves to remain in F1. "Maybe 10 years ago it came easier. Maybe when you're a kid, you just jump in and drive, and the older you get, the more things are around your life and involved, and can maybe interfere. Lap 48 was anything but fun for Ricciardo, with the Australian losing three positions across the 4.9km run, including being the victim of a double overtake by Esteban Ocon and Kevin Magnussen in the first sector.
The Honey Badger sits 10 points behind his team-mate, Yuki Tsunoda, collecting just 12 points across 16 races this season. “Obviously, I wish I could produce it every weekend, but I take a little bit of heat away from myself. It’s every track kind of suits one or the other, and it’s hard to shine when you’re in such a tight fight. “So I think I already lost probably two and a half good laps of the tyre, and that was maybe the difference.

But while Martin Brundle shared his shoey at the 2017 Austrian Grand Prix, fellow podium finishers Vettel and Bottas declined Ricciardo’s offer. He also forgot to do a shoey after the 2020  Eifel Grand Prix when Ricciardo secured his first of two podium finishes with Renault. Other individuals  to share a shoey with Ricciardo include actors Gerard Butler at the 2016 United States Grand Prix and Patrick Stewart at the 2017 Canadian Grand Prix. Lance Stroll also celebrated his first F1 podium at the 2017 Azerbaijan Grand Prix by sharing his shoey. Losing the MGU-K meant Ricciardo had 25% less horsepower available to him and even lost the use of two gears.
Upon returning from the summer break, Ricciardo qualified fourth for the Belgian Grand Prix in wet conditions, ahead of his teammate who crashed out in Q3. The race on Sunday was delayed multiple times due to torrential rain and was abandoned after two laps behind the safety car. The following weekend at the Dutch Grand Prix, Ricciardo qualified in tenth, again ahead of his teammate.

His first podium was back at the 2014 Spanish Grand Prix when Ricciardo finished in third place during his fifth race after stepping up to Red Bull. We all hope that he has his career back on track as he races for Visa Cash App RB this year, as he bids for a Red Bull comeback ahead of the 2025 Formula 1 season. In season six – which is set to be released on 23 February, he makes a return with AlphaTauri to drive for his fourth team in five years. After McLaren sacked him in 2022 in favour of Piastri, he made a return to the grid in the middle of last season  with RB, with the rumour mill at one point suggesting he could rejoin Red Bull Racing as Verstappen’s teammate. The 35-year-old’s contract expired after the Singapore Grand Prix and he was dropped with six races to go, likely spelling the end of his long career in the sport.
But the Australian refused to be beaten and utilised the narrow roads to keep Vettel behind, eventually winning by 7.336 seconds as Vettel also lost time in traffic. Valtteri Bottas initially moved ahead of Ricciardo at the start of the 2016 Spanish GP to put his Williams in third place. Ricciardo also fell back early on after Red Bull urged him against putting undue stress through his tyres. Ricciardo recovered from falling to the back of the field to move into contention for points entering the closing stages of the 2011 Australian Grand Prix.
This quote inspires us all to reframe our perspective on failure and embrace it as a necessary part of our path towards success. In this empowering quote, professional racing driver Daniel Ricciardo emphasizes the importance of surrounding oneself with positive and supportive individuals who genuinely believe in our dreams. Ricciardo highlights the vital role that our social circle plays in shaping our mindset and influencing our ability to achieve our goals. By surrounding ourselves with those who uplift and encourage us, we gain the necessary momentum and motivation to chase our dreams relentlessly.

Williams racer Albon got the run on Ricciardo after the Visa Cash App RB driver struggled for grip exiting Turn 2. But as Albon put his car to right with the overlap, Ricciardo drifted across slightly as the Perth native saw the Aston Martin of Lance Stroll was approaching on his left. The Dutchman’s late defensive move took the air from Ricciardo’s front wing and forced the Australian to lock up his front tyres. Ricciardo was just a passenger as his car then ploughed into Verstappen from behind and took both Red Bull drivers out of the 2018 Azerbaijan GP. Ricciardo had controlled the race over the early wet conditions and left Mercedes duo Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton in his wake.
Yet another third place followed in Canada after jumping Kimi Räikkönen, and inheriting positions after Vettel stopped for a front wing change and Verstappen retired. At the Spanish Grand Prix, Ricciardo qualified seventh, but managed to climb to fifth on the opening lap. He defended fifth from Red Bull driver Sergio Pérez until lap 45, where Pérez was able to get past at turn one. He finished sixth, marking the first time in the season he finished ahead of Norris. In the following round of the season, the Monaco Grand Prix, Ricciardo was eliminated in the second phase of qualifying and finished twelfth during the race after being lapped by his teammate, who finished on the podium. A crash in qualifying at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix meant Ricciardo started the race in thirteenth, though he was able to climb up into the points during the race and finished ninth.

He then took the lead late on in the race when leader Lewis Hamilton retired with an engine failure. After fighting with his Red Bull teammate Verstappen, Ricciardo took his first victory of the season. He repeated his "shoey" celebration on the podium and was able to get team boss Christian Horner as well as podium sharers Verstappen and Rosberg to repeat the celebration. Ricciardo eventually sealed third in the Drivers' Championship following a podium finish in Mexico. He scored 256 points and achieved one pole, one win, seven other podiums and three fastest laps. Other than Sergio Pérez, he is the only driver to have been classified in every race of the 2016 season.