It's official: Racing Bulls have officially announced that Daniel Ricciardo has driven his last race for the team, with young affiliate driver Liam Lawson taking his place for the season's final six races.
Why Did This Happen?
Ricciardo has been struggling this season, with his teammate Yuki Tsunoda almost doubling his point total this season (22 vs. 12). He has also finished inside the points three times this season to Yuki's seven. What Ricciardo was producing on the track was simply not enough to keep his seat at RB.
Since RB is like a trial team for Red Bull, Red Bull team Principal Christian Horner always makes sure that both RB drivers are potential candidates for a Red Bull seat one day, given a seat becomes open. Horner is never afraid to make a change when it comes to who is driving at RB, and Ricciardo got to the point where Horner no longer could consider him for a seat at Red Bull, thus making the difficult decision to move on from Ricciardo.
Why Now?
There are two main reasons as to why Red Bull and RB decided to make the driver change mid-season.
One, Ricciardo's contract could have had a performance clause that could be used after the Singapore Grand Prix, should the team choose to use it. A performance clause is included in a driver's contract to give the team an out if they see fit. This allows the team, at a certain point in the season, to terminate a driver's contract without taking any financial penalty or fee.
In this case, Ricciardo's performance clause must have been able to be executed after the Singapore Grand Prix, in which Red Bull and RB chose to use it to replace Ricciardo.
The second reason would be that Red Bull wants to see what they have in young driver Liam Lawson. Lawson impressed many in the few races he participated in last year (he was a replacement driver for Ricciardo while Ricciardo was recovering from a hand injury) and far exceeded everyone's expectations. Lawson's talent and potential are clearly there, and the sooner Red Bull gets him in a Formula One car, the more time they have to assess his ability and decide whether or not they want to see more from him next season, competing for a potential future Red Bull seat.
With Sergio Perez struggling this season and Max Verstappen rumored to leave the team if they don't fix their performance issues, the possibility for open seats at Red Bull is stronger than ever. This circumstance makes it all the more important for Red Bull to find suitable drivers for their team, which could be why they chose to replace Ricciardo with Lawson sooner rather than later.
Ricciardo's Strong Career
This change likely means it's the end of Ricciardo's strong career on the track. In his fourteen-year career, the 35-year-old from Australia drove in 257 grand prix, finishing with:
8 race wins
3 pole positions
32 podiums
17 fastest laps
1,329 total points scored
In his career, Ricciardo drove for HRT, Toro Rosso, Red Bull, Renault, McLaren, and Alpha Tauri/RB Racing (Alpha Tauri changed their name to Visa CashApp Racing Bulls starting in the 2024 season).
Did Danny Ric Deserve Better?
From an ethical perspective, absolutely. However, that unfortunately is the brutality of the sport, and what comes with the job a driver signs up for. Teams can not afford to keep a driver if the driver is not performing at the level they are expected to. There are too few seats and too much to lose for teams in Formula One not to make these tough decisions to replace drivers. The team has to come first, which is was Red Bull and RB have continued to do throughout the years.
From a fan's perspective, Ricciardo was a beloved figure on and off the track, known for his glowing personality and positivity, and he deserved better. Considering the impact he made on the sport, Ricciardo deserved to at least finish off the season, and get the farewell tour all legendary drivers should get.
Ricciardo not only was successful on the track but his success and influence off the track were just as, if not more, important to the sport. Ricciardo's outgoing and bright personality was what caught the attention of millions around the world and brought in new fans as the years went on. He was a person you loved to root for, as his smile took the sport by storm. From a media standpoint, Ricciardo was a focal point in helping grow F1's media platform along with their docu-series "Drive to Survive". He will be missed around the paddock.
All stats found at pitwall.app
Stay tuned for more F1 content, and be sure to check out fansonlysportz.com for more sports media content posted daily.
Catch you next time!
-Matt Hylen
Comments