Daniel Ricciardo makes heartbreaking F1 admission: 'What do I do now?'

Daniel Ricciardo

'What do I do now?' - Daniel Ricciardo's heartbreaking F1 admission

Daniel Ricciardo was sacked by VCARB midway through the 2024 season

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Wednesday 11 March 2026 21:55 Updated: 11:47

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Former F1 star Daniel Ricciardo has shared an update on his mindset after leaving the sport 18 months ago.

Fan favourite Ricciardo has not been seen on the F1 grid since he was sacked by Racing Bulls following the 2024 Singapore Grand Prix and, although he wasn't given a proper send off, he subsequently announced his retirement from the sport.

Ricciardo is now working as a global ambassador for Ford Racing, although he has confirmed that the role is nothing to do with their F1 partnership with his former Red Bull team.

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Still only 36, it seems as though Ricciardo's racing days are over, and his final two contracts in F1 with McLaren and Racing Bulls respectively were terminated prematurely.

Now, Ricciardo has offered an interesting insight into how he felt when he first left the sport, including a heartbreaking admission about missing the thrill of F1.

"When you wake up with really one purpose for so many years, even if it feels like the right time, necessarily," Ricciardo told The Athletic. "It doesn’t really change the fact that, 'oh, it’s gone, and what do I do now?'"

"So much of my life was events and trackside, and there’s always a camera around. There’s always people, and I have to put on always a smile and have to be careful what I say and this and that.

"I tried to, obviously, always come across authentic and as myself, but it’s impossible to be 100 per cent that when there is just always eyes on you."

Ricciardo's F1 legacy

Aussie fan favourite Ricciardo was a much-loved member of the F1 paddock, particularly during his Red Bull days, when he claimed seven of his overall eight career grand prix victories.

Ricciardo also picked up 32 grand prix podiums, and finished third in the drivers' championship on two occasions, including in 2014, when he was the only non-Mercedes driver to win a race, picking up three victories that year in a stunning show of his skills up against four-time champion Sebastian Vettel at Red Bull.

As part of Red Bull's partnership with Ford, team principal Laurent Mekies recently stated that Ricciardo may well be back in the F1 paddock in the future, taking a watching brief.

His Ford role has already led Ricciardo to reunite with former team-mate Max Verstappen, in a Ford season launch event, and fans will be desperate to see more from the two friends together once again.