Daniel Ricciardo said he was grateful RB made the decision to let him go after the 2024 Singapore Grand Prix, which effectively ended his Formula 1 career and spared him the personal strain of choosing to retire. He linked the outcome to a difficult comeback with Red Bull’s teams, including a wrist injury at Zandvoort and fading form with the rebranded Racing Bulls.
Ricciardo rose to prominence with Red Bull from 2014 to 2019, winning races and standing on the podium often. He then left for Renault and later moved to McLaren, where he won the 2021 Italian Grand Prix at Monza. McLaren dropped him at the end of 2022 after two tough seasons. Red Bull brought him back as a reserve in 2023. He returned to the grid midseason with AlphaTauri but broke his wrist at Zandvoort, which forced a layoff and broke his rhythm.
He started 2024 with RB, the successor to AlphaTauri, but struggled to find speed and consistency. After the Singapore round, the team replaced him with Liam Lawson. Ricciardo said the call helped him accept that his F1 run had reached its limit. He did not have to wrestle with a retirement decision while still trying to perform.
He described the last few years as draining. Repeated resets made it harder to reach his old level. The injury and the stop-start nature of his return took energy and confidence. He felt the gap between where he had been and where he was becoming too wide. He said he had to shut out encouragement from outside and be honest with himself about stopping. The RB decision cleared the path. It let him move on without second-guessing what might have been with one more race or one more setup change.
Ricciardo said he now has peace with a 13-year arc in Formula 1. His record stands at eight wins, 32 podiums, and three poles. Those results came across stints with Red Bull, Renault, and McLaren, plus the late return with AlphaTauri and RB. He said the numbers and the journey help him accept that the time was right to step away.
He has stayed connected to motorsport. He is working as a Ford Racing ambassador and continues some Red Bull-related activities. The work keeps him around the paddock and the sport he built his name in, without the weekly demands of racing. He said this balance feels right after the long push to come back and the exhaustion that followed.