Daniel Ricciardo named one series that ‘still scares him’ as the prospect of his Formula 1 career ending within the next few months looms larger and larger amid rumours that RB could even replace him with Liam Lawson after the 2024 Singapore Grand Prix.
Teammates past and present Max Verstappen and Yuki Tsunoda paid tribute to the popular Australian in Singapore but the narrative was decidedly past tense with Lawson apparently set to take over at RB from 2025.
However, a three-week gap before the last leg of the season commences means the Kiwi could even step in from the United States GP in mid-October, and Verstappen was asked whether he thought Ricciardo deserves to continue in F1.
“Daniel’s a great guy, I think he has proven himself as a great Formula 1 driver. He’s a he’s a friend of mine,” Verstappen told the media. “And I think in general, always being, you know, in this kind of position is never nice.
“But also, I didn’t think he has to feel sorry for himself. Sometimes things maybe don’t work out the way you want them in certain stages of your career, but you still have achieved a lot more than anyone could ever dream of in their lives.
“So even if this is, let’s say the last race or whatever, you can still look back at something amazing that not many people can achieve and do something else, maybe in life also.”
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Tsunoda added: “I think same as Max. I respect him a lot. We see how it goes but I like him, obviously we all want to see him racing as well.
“It doesn’t matter deserve or not, but you know the things we want to see and, he achieved a lot of things as well at the same time.”
Ricciardo‘s 12-minute media availability at the Marina Bay Street Circuit was dominated by questions about his future, including what his racing future could look like if he’s not in F1 in 2025.
While the 35-year-old was born in Perth to Italian-Australian parents, Ricciardo also has a huge love for the USA a house in Los Angeles, and IndyCar is a popular stop for post-grad F1 drivers. However,
“IndyCar still scares me,” Ricciardo said. “I’ve thought about it because I also thought about it a couple of years ago when I knew that I wasn’t going start the ’23 season, but I don’t know.
“I know I’m still a competitor, I still have a lot of fire in me but maybe that itch is scratched doing something else, it’s hard just being in the sport and fighting for maybe a tenth place every now and then.
“It’s maybe the same with doing another series – no disrespect to other series, I’m a fan of NASCAR and a lot of other forms of motorsport. But because I’ve been there and experienced the highest of highs, will I get true fulfillment doing something else?
“[There’s] no guarantee I’ll be awesome doing something else so is that going to actually scratch the itch and give me what I want? I don’t know, I’d probably say more no than yes.
“And because I already experienced a little bit of it, I don’t have a fear of let’s say, not swiping into the paddock.”
Verstappen on Ricciardo’s racing future
Ricciardo may even opt to retire from full-time racing altogether in 2025. Alongside his Los Angeles and Monaco homes, Ricciardo owns a farm in his home country and retained a presence in F1 even after losing his McLaren seat at the start of 2023.
That’s something Verstappen highlighted as questions about the Dutchman’s own F1 future remain – he’s even questioned whether he will continue in F1 past the end of his current contract.
“There are many more other race series, or not,” Verstappen added. “Maybe just chill back at the farm, have a lot of fun.
“He’s a great guy, so for me it doesn’t really matter or not if you deserve to be here. A lot of people deserve to be here, and some don’t deserve to be here. That’s life also.”
