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Welcome back to Prime Tire, where we’re wondering if I picked the right Thursday to take off. *checks the Internet* Nope. I sure didn’t.
Daniel Ricciardo is out of F1. I’m Patrick, and both of our writers will be along shortly. Let’s dive in.
An F1 Star Exits
Daniel Ricciardo out, Liam Lawson in
RB confirmed on Thursday that Daniel Ricciardo is out at sister team RB, with Liam Lawson set to replace the veteran for the rest of 2024. Lawson has said he’s not guaranteed the seat for 2025 yet.
It’s a sudden career end for one of F1’s most recognizable characters. Here’s a full rundown on how Ricciardo lost his F1 seat. For now, here’s what we know:
- Lingering doubts: Ricciardo was out-performed early this season by teammate Yuki Tsunoda. He improved during the summer, but not enough to stave off scrutiny. His contract was set to expire at season’s end.
- Red Bull dream dashed: Ricciardo wanted to return to Red Bull Racing. That door seemingly closed twice: in June, when Sergio Pérez signed a new two-year contract at Red Bull, and again in July, when Red Bull confirmed Pérez wouldn’t be replaced despite struggles.
- Lawson’s contract details: After a certain date past the Singapore GP, Lawson was free to leave the Red Bull program if he didn’t have F1 seat assurances from Red Bull. Lawson is a prized young driver, and Red Bull was obviously loathed to lose him to a rival team.
- When Ricciardo knew: This is still a bit murky. On Thursday ahead of the Singapore GP, Ricciardo said he didn’t know. Yesterday, Red Bull adviser Helmut Marko said Ricciardo had been told before Singapore. Lawson has said he was aware of the plan for two weeks.
Ricciardo, 35, became one of the sport’s most popular drivers thanks to his star turn on Netflix’s “Drive to Survive” docuseries. Drivers and fans alike posted an outpouring of farewells on social media. Netflix’s main account even posted a tribute montage.
I wholeheartedly agree with Luke, who wrote yesterday that one of the sport’s most iconic drivers of the last 10 years deserved a better goodbye. I asked our F1 writers to share their Ricciardo memories:
Inside the Paddock with Luke Smith: Ricciardo is an F1 rarity
Social media has been awash with personal tributes to Ricciardo in the last 24 hours. It’s rare that a driver can make such an impact on a sport and its community.
Ricciardo’s been there right the way through my time in F1. My first race was in 2013 when he was closing on the promotion to Red Bull to replace Mark Webber. At only my third race, Ricciardo flipped me off with a laugh in a media session after I teased him about Australia losing to England in the Ashes that summer. He’s the kind of driver you could have that sort of banter with.
A standout memory came in Montreal in 2014, when Ricciardo won his first race. In a year of Mercedes domination, he took advantage of its reliability issues to pull a daring late pass on Nico Rosberg for the win. The smile and celebrations that followed were unlike any I’ve seen for a driver’s first win since. It’s the kind of moment a driver’s whole career is dedicated toward, worthy of such jubilation.
The wins, podiums and poles aside, the fact Ricciardo will be remembered in F1 for who he is speaks volumes. He’s brought such color and character to the paddock. I’ll miss the random media session quips and turns of phrases that went far beyond the usual driver comments. But above all, Ricciardo stood for honesty and integrity. Through all the tough times lately, he’s never once shirked accountability. Another rare trait of the modern F1 driver.
So cheers, Daniel. You’re a good bloke, and you’ll be missed.
Inside the Paddock with Madeline Coleman: I’ll remember Ricciardo’s musical side
While many likely will pinpoint a Netflix moment, a grand prix or a funny social media posting as some of their favorite Ricciardo memories, mine takes place away from the track. I traveled to Nashville, Tenn., before the United States Grand Prix last year for Red Bull’s showrun, when a team can showcase one of its cars. Ricciardo, fresh off of his recovery from surgery for his injured hand, drove the RB7 down Lower Broadway.
It wasn’t so much the driving that caught my attention, as cool as it was, but rather the pure joy he had in Music City. One of the nights in Nashville, I interviewed him at Dierks Bentley’s Whiskey Row. We talked about a variety of topics — ranging from his comeback (he refused to call the injury a setback) to his biggest fear and how he describes himself. But one topic Ricciardo and I typically talk about during our one-on-one interviews is music.
Ricciardo described music as therapy, and it played a role in getting him back into F1. “If I wrote on a whiteboard, ‘What does Daniel want to get back to this year?’ it would have been, ‘Take me back to where it all started,’” Ricciardo said in Nashville last year. “I want to feel that hunger again. I want to get rid of everything else and just try to be that kid again. That’s putting myself in the position to be the best driver. So that went down to the music I used to listen to.”
We’ve exchanged music recommendations over the seasons, with Zach Bryan being a recurring suggestion from the Australian. Two songs he was listening to then were ‘This Road I Know’ on American Heartbreak and ‘Fear and Friday’s (Poem)’ on Bryan’s 2023 studio album. After talking a little about Bryan, Ricciardo asked me my thoughts, saying, “What’s a song that’s spoken to you?”
Ricciardo may be an eight-time grand prix winner and a star in the sport, but he always was genuine, bringing the human side to F1.
Readers: Colapinto no match for reptile
On Monday, we asked the question on the lips of every F1 fan: Did Williams’ Franco Colapinto or the FP3 monitor lizard make the best on-track move of the weekend?
The results are in:
That’s an overwhelming — nay, cold-blooded — win for the lizard. Your analysis, as expected, was hilarious.
Team Lizard
“The lizard. Colapinto was impressive, but lizards have been running from predators since the Jurassic period. Now that they’ve evolved to handle the tight corners of Singapore, we should all be afraid.”
“The waddle of the year!”
“Hips don’t lie.”
“You try moving that fast while waddling. I’d like to see you try.” (Pat note: Challenge not accepted.)
“Fast off the line. Able to accelerate and maneuver even under braking. M. Lizard could be the next McLaren driver.”
Team Franco
“Only because I am Team Williams.”
“Franco gained 5 spots. The lizard, though fast, did not finish the race.”
“This was tough … but the monitor lizard was acclimated to the race conditions and clearly didn’t give his all. Meanwhile, Colapinto could barely get out of his car at the end of the race, and he did brilliantly on a tough street circuit.”
“Colapinto did actually overtake someone, and he didn’t let them catch him!”
“A great pass by a rookie driver that no one had on their radar.” (Pat note: I love that this could also apply to the lizard.)
Outside the Points
The final 2025 F1 seat left to be decided is at Sauber. Madeline had a good breakdown of who could fill it.
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff wasn’t too happy with the Red Bull boss hinting that George Russell could leave Mercedes.
Finally, is Max Verstappen under the spell of the dreaded Leeds United curse? Nancy Froston investigates.
🙃 https://t.co/PhhW8pBA12 pic.twitter.com/5pnDagJHi8
— Tom Bellingham (@TomP1Bellingham) September 27, 2024
(Top photo: George Hitchens/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
