Sports · Motorsport · 2 hrs ago
Ricciardo says he wishes he had stayed at Red Bull in 2018
Daniel Ricciardo says he wishes he had stayed at Red Bull rather than leaving the Formula 1 team after the 2018 season.
He joined Renault for 2019, saying at the time he wanted a new challenge and felt he was becoming too comfortable.
Ricciardo believes Red Bull offered his best chance to fight for a world title, but he says it would be unfair to claim he would have beaten teammate Max Verstappen.
Verstappen went on to win four straight world titles from 2021, while Ricciardo won once more, for McLaren in 2021.
Ricciardo later returned to the Red Bull team, first as a reserve driver and then as a racer for its second team.
His Formula 1 career ended in 2024 after he was dropped following the Singapore Grand Prix, leaving him to wonder what might have happened if he had stayed.
Daniel Ricciardo says he wishes he had stayed with Red Bull rather than leaving at the end of the 2018 Formula 1 season.
He said Red Bull wanted him to stay, but at the time he felt comfortable and wanted to try something else.
Ricciardo called the move his best opportunity to fight for a world championship.
He said it would be unfair to claim he would have beaten Max Verstappen.
After leaving, Ricciardo joined Renault, later raced for McLaren and returned to the Red Bull family before his F1 career ended in 2024.
- Who
- Daniel Ricciardo, a former Red Bull Formula 1 driver.
- What
- He said he wishes he had stayed at Red Bull after the 2018 season.
- When
- He left Red Bull at the end of the 2018 season and discussed the decision on the Beyond The Grid podcast.
- Where
- Red Bull’s Formula 1 team.
- Why
- He said he felt comfortable and complacent and wanted to try something else.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Ricciardo left Red Bull and joined Renault for 2019.
Ricciardo won his final Formula 1 race, for McLaren at Monza.
Ricciardo returned to the Red Bull family as a reserve driver.
Ricciardo was dropped after the Singapore Grand Prix, and his Formula 1 career ended.
- Red Bull wins
- Ricciardo won seven grands prix with the team.
- Departure
- He left Red Bull at the end of the 2018 season.
- Next team
- Ricciardo joined Renault for 2019.
- Career end
- His Formula 1 career ended in 2024.
- Return to Red Bull family
- He became a reserve driver in 2023 and later raced for the team’s second team.
What people are saying
I wish I would have stayed but, I don’t know, also at the time I left because I felt I was getting a bit comfortable, a bit complacent.
If I could have been a world champion, yes, was that my best opportunity? Yeah, absolutely.
I’m not doubting my abilities to have kept competing with Max.