Formula 1 returnee Daniel Ricciardo raves that he has enjoyed the second half of the season more than he has for a long time – what his time out has to do with it
Daniel Ricciardo was already out of Formula 1 when a new door opened for him as Red Bull’s third driver after his premature departure from McLaren. However, the Australian had not expected to return to the regular cockpit in the course of this season.
But the sacking of Nyck de Vries from AlphaTauri made it possible. This meant that Ricciardo’s time out was shorter than expected, but he still says: “I think it showed me how much I ultimately love it, how much it means to me.”
“Now I feel like I’ve been given a second chance, a new lease of life that tells me, ‘Okay, I want to make sure this is my only priority, I’m going to put all my energy into it’,” explains the 34-year-old.
“Because I don’t want to walk away one day and say, ‘I could have done more’ or ‘The career slipped away from me a little bit’. I would hate to feel that,” he admits. The time away has given him “a new perspective” in this respect. “I’d say I’d recommend it to anyone!”
“Obviously everyone is on their own journey, but I can’t believe how much I enjoyed the second half of the season. It’s pretty crazy what six months can do,” enthuses Ricciardo about his Formula 1 comeback.
Because before that time, the Australian was at a completely different point and questioned many things. “This sport should be the coolest thing we do, right? But when you’ve been doing it your whole life and you go through certain things … When you win, it’s kind of easy.”
“But when you don’t win, of course there are other challenging moments where you can get a bit frustrated. And then, of course, your self-confidence also suffers from the competitive situation,” says Ricciardo.
“So you ask yourself more questions,” adds the Australian. “And I think that also makes you question your love for the cause, you might not be as hungry and ready for the other sides of the sport, the preparation and all that. “
