Daniel Ricciardo revealed that his premature departure from McLaren left his motivation “damaged and diminished,” yet in hindsight, it emerged as an unexpected boon to exit the squad when he did.
Aside from a remarkable win at Monza in 2021, Ricciardo found himself consistently overshadowed by teammate Lando Norris, leading to a mutual decision to terminate his contract a year early, two years into a three-year agreement.
This decision rendered Ricciardo without a team at the outset of 2023, prompting his return to Red Bull in a reserve driver capacity, before he was swiftly transitioned into AlphaTauri mid-season to take over for Nyck de Vries.
Despite encountering a setback with a hand injury after only two races, Ricciardo’s efforts were sufficient to clinch a permanent position with Red Bull’s sibling team for 2024, now operating under the name RB.
In the wake of his time away from racing, the victor of eight Grand Prix races articulated how his perspective on the sport has evolved and the manner in which it rejuvenated his drive and passion.
Ricciardo shared his thoughts with the French version of Motorsport.com; “As unpleasant as the situation at McLaren was, it was a blessing in disguise.
“Let’s just say they ended my contract because I needed to take a step back to find myself, find my love again and find my hunger again.
“I think a lot of things were a bit hurt or bruised, like my willpower and motivation. So I needed to rediscover them and this period of rest allowed me to do that.”
Ricciardo aims to secure a position alongside Max Verstappen for the 2025 season at Red Bull, eyeing his ‘former’ seat which remains open past this year’s end.
Red Bull has made it clear that Sergio Perez will have the priority for the seat, should he continue to meet the performance expectations beside the current World Champion. Nevertheless, Ricciardo is keen on positioning himself as a strong contender for the role as well.
His approach to Formula 1 has evolved, with Ricciardo now prioritizing maintaining enjoyment in his life, in addition to handling the demands of the sport.
He further elaborated, “When you’re going through something, obviously it can change you a bit and give you a different perspective, or make you appreciate the good times more and understand how to deal with the bad.
“When you’re in the doldrums, you realize what’s important to you and what’s not. I think you learn a lot about yourself from all this. And I think when I came out of it, I realized that I still really loved this sport, that I still believed in myself.
“I don’t want to carry the weight of the world on my shoulders, because it should remain fun.
“And yes, I’m going to take things seriously, I’m going to try to be the best version of myself, but I don’t want it to consume every part of me to the point where I can’t enjoy other aspects of my life, because that’s not how it’s supposed to be – and that’s not the way I’ve always approached competition.”
