Daniel Ricciardo reveals McLaren regrets: “Ask more questions, be more demanding”
A dreadful two-year spell came to a premature close at the end of 2022 when McLaren opted to pay off the th🌊ird year of Ricciardo’s deal in order to replace him with rookie Oscar Piastri.
It left the veteran driver without a full-time seat this season, and also ▨shrouded his ❀longer-term future in doubt.
“I will alwa▨ys take some responsibility or accountability,” he said to .
“For many years I truly believed I was the best, an🎐d I am the best in the world, so whatever the situation, I’ll be able to overcome it.
“And obviously wit✃h McLaren it was tough for me to do that.
“I wa🌠s aware that I’m not the perfect driver, I do have weaknesses. So I’ll al💦ways hold something on to myself.
“Having a bit of a chance to remove myself ꦬfrom it and now looking back on the last two years, I would have done things differently if I had that time again - maybe ask mo💫re questions or been a little bit more demanding.
“But you also live and you learn, so I don’t look back with reꦬgret. That was a situation and I got through it.”
Ricciar🅠do is the third 🅺driver for Red Bull this season but is expected to pursue a full-time seat next year.
“Now, getting back into Red Bull, my confidence was probably not what itಌ used to be as well.
“I was probably a little bit timid getting into the sim🅰ulator, trying to downplaꦰy how it was going to go.
“But as the day went oꦕn, the more comfortable I felt,♌ and the more it just felt like I was back home in a car that I honestly felt comfortable with.
“Everything felt like it was pretღty recharged after that first day.”
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner aimed a dig at McLa🐓ren CEO🃏 Zak Brown when discussing Ricciardo recently.
“We had to feed 💜him up, I don’t know what yoꦬu guys did to him,” Horner said.
“He looked skinny. He looks healthier now. He’s training hard and ✨re✃ady to go, given a chance.”
Ricciardo revealed that his ambition ♒is to return to a team near the top of the F1 pecking order, saying: “I don’t want to just be on the grid [in order] to be on the grid and struggle in 18th place.”
James was a sports journalist at Sky Spo💙rts for a decade cove💫ring everything from American sports, to football, to F1.
