Very not often does the storybook ending occur for an athlete in skilled sport — and that luxurious wasn’t afforded to Daniel Ricciardo.
The Honey Badger’s second stint in Formulation 1 ends with out fanfare, shafted with six races left within the season and his profession in F1 all however over.
Ricciardo is aware of all too nicely the cut-throat nature of Formulation 1.
His debut in 2010, and return in 2023, got here in the midst of these seasons on the expense of another person’s profession.
Now, it’s Ricciardo’s profession that flames out following a number of seasons of battle and disappointment.
However whereas his profession in F1 ends sooner than he wished, the conclusion shouldn’t overshadow the brilliance he displayed for therefore a few years.
Ricciardo has made F1 higher and his profession needs to be remembered for that.
Conserving Mercedes sincere throughout their period of dominance
Luck and timing are sometimes a pre-requisite for achievement on this sport and Ricciardo was typically left with out.
He was touted as a future star for Purple Bull Racing and after three and a half years in F1, he was promoted to the principle group for the 2014 season.
As Lewis Hamilton (centre) and Nico Rosberg (proper) led Mercedes initially of their domination, Daniel Ricciardo was all the time close by to make sure that they had competitors. (Reuters: Pablo Sanchez)
He joined a group that had received the earlier 4 drivers’ and constructors’ world championships.
This promotion ought to have given him the prospect to fulfil his clear potential as a world championship challenger.
Sadly for Ricciardo, 2014 was the start of Mercedes’s dominance in F1, profitable the subsequent seven drivers’ championships and eight constructors’ titles.
Until you have been in a Mercedes from 2014-2021, your probabilities of profitable recurrently have been slim.
Ricciardo’s five-year stint with Purple Bull was the group’s least profitable interval since they received their first grand prix in 2009.
However regardless of the gulf between Mercedes and the remainder of the sector, Ricciardo stored Mercedes sincere for all of these years.
From 2014 to 2018, he received seven grands prix and was at occasions the one driver who really challenged the Mercedes juggernaut.
Three of these wins got here in 2014, when Ricciardo was the one non-Mercedes driver to win a race.
Taking three wins off the 2014 Mercedes group would have been sufficient of an accomplishment.
However Ricciardo additionally outperformed his four-time world champion teammate Sebastian Vettel.
He completed third within the drivers’ championship in 2014 and 2016 and produced a few of the best overtakes of the fashionable period.
Ricciardo’s closing 12 months with Purple Bull was difficult.
A defective Renault-supplied engine meant Purple Bull determined to group up with Honda for the 2019 season.
That was an enormous gamble, with Honda’s re-introduction to F1 with McLaren being an unmitigated failure.
The writing was on the wall for Ricciardo because the group chief as nicely, with Purple Bull grooming then-21-year-old Max Verstappen for its future.
Ricciardo wished extra and he wished to show he might succeed outdoors of the Purple Bull household — which he had been part of since he was a teen.
Working magic with Renault
Ricciardo’s transfer to Renault in 2019 was a shock.
The Australian was leaving a group who had main issues with Renault engines, to drive for the works French group.
What should not be forgotten is that Purple Bull was about to enter the unknown in 2019.
Daniel Ricciardo was excellent for Renault, securing two podiums for a group that was typically battling within the midfield. (Pool through Reuters: Miguel Medina)
The Honda engine, as we now know, was the catalyst to Purple Bull ending Mercedes’s stranglehold on the F1 world.
However heading into 2019 there have been main query marks about Honda’s potential to supply any group with a world championship-calibre engine.
Renault additionally supplied Ricciardo large cash — some suggesting it was upwards of $60 million a season.
The French group additionally gave the impression to be on the up within the latter a part of the 2010s.
With Ricciardo on the wheel, Renault carried out significantly better than its automobile in all probability deserved.
There have been teething issues firstly of 2019, however by the top of the season, Ricciardo was recurrently scoring factors.
It was the 2020 season the place Ricciardo not solely confirmed how good he was, however it might be his greatest season in F1.
He wrestled that Renault to a pair of podiums and fifth within the drivers’ standings. He belted his teammate Esteban Ocon who completed twelfth.
Nevertheless, the group dropped from fourth to fifth within the constructors’ championship that season — and they might have been a distant fifth or a lot decrease if it wasn’t for Ricciardo.
Renault, who seemed like a group on the up, was on the verge of falling off a cliff, which is now seen with the struggles of Alpine (identical group, new title).
Ricciardo’s brilliance in 2020 might have papered over cracks forming at Renault.
Returning McLaren to the highest step
Ricciardo’s profession can be remembered for his wins and overtakes, however he was additionally a sufferer of becoming a member of the precise group on the incorrect time.
His transfer to Purple Bull got here when the group was in a type hunch — though it was all the time a high group.
The McLaren transfer got here two years too early.
Ricciardo’s transfer from Renault to McLaren shocked many.
On the time Renault gave the impression to be in a greater place to interrupt into the higher echelon of F1.
Ricciardo, rightfully, noticed McLaren was the group greatest positioned to make the leap. Sadly for him, McLaren was not fairly able to make the leap.
His time at McLaren at occasions was irritating.
He was recurrently outperformed by Lando Norris, who was morphing into the race-winning driver followers get pleasure from watching immediately.
Nevertheless, that’s not to say Ricciardo did not make his personal.
When the Australian joined the group in 2021, a McLaren driver had not received a race in 9 years. In that point the group had been to the underside of F1 and have become a shell of its glory years.
However there have been indicators McLaren was inching its approach up the grid, and it was Ricciardo who lastly gave the group the win it so desperately wanted.
The Australian was given one likelihood to win at McLaren and he took it on the 2021 Italian Grand Prix.
He was fast all weekend and acquired the soar on Norris firstly. He was in an awesome battle for third, then Verstappen and Hamilton got here collectively and have been each out of the race.
Beneath strain from his youthful teammate wanting his first win, Ricciardo was cool, calm and picked up.
That weekend was the perfect of Daniel Ricciardo. Quick, easy and flawless. It was all the pieces McLaren wished, however by no means had sufficient of.
The group let him go on the finish of the 2022 season with a 12 months remaining on his contract, favouring rising star Oscar Piastri, who has confirmed to be one of many quickest drivers on the earth.
However the confidence the group gained from Ricciardo’s day of excellence can’t be measured. It was the primary signal of a brand new daybreak for the famed-British group, and it took Ricciardo to make that occur.
Drive to Survive wanted Ricciardo to remain alive
Arguably, F1 has by no means been extra standard.
It has 24 race weekends this 12 months on 5 continents, and eventually seems to have cracked the US market with three grands prix within the land of the free.
A significant contributor to F1’s recognition boon was Netflix’s doco-series, Drive to Survive.
This system introduced in a swath of latest followers to the game, giving audiences a glimpse into the chaotic and drama-filled world from the attitude of the groups preventing for wins, and people actually making an attempt to outlive.
However would that present be the identical if it didn’t have Ricciardo? No. Arguably, it might have failed.
That’s the opinion of the sequence producer Paul Martin, who advised the Australian Monetary Evaluate in February, 2023, that the success of the present, which then led to an enormous enhance in F1’s recognition, could be squarely placed on Ricciardo’s shoulders.
“With out Danny, there would not be a present. He was the primary one that actually purchased into the thought of it,” Martin mentioned.
“He understood what it was, what was wanted … if we hadn’t had Danny and Christian [Horner, Red Bull team principal], I am unsure we might have even acquired to the top of that first 12 months.”
It’s this which makes Ricciardo a real nice of the game.
His impression on F1 can’t be measured in statistics alone.
He was comfortably probably the most standard drivers on the grid earlier than this system, because of his enthusiastic nature, fan-friendly manner and sensible race-craft on observe.
However Ricciardo behind the scenes drew new followers in by the hundreds of thousands — an immeasurable impression that can virtually actually be felt for generations to return.
