438 replies to this topic

[Brackets]

They gave him the fastest lap

They gave him a scandal.

[SenorSjon]

They gave him a scandal.

 

Nothing too serious. Horner and Brown even made up on the plane.

 

---

 

 

Well, the topic title can be changed again.

[Nemo1965]

There are a lot of theories about how Ricciardo lost his form since Renault, or, negatively, that he wasn't that good in the first place. I think too many people just assume that because Alonso and Hamilton are still so good in and against their forties, that is the new standard. Just like tennisfans are kind of assuming that Janik Sinner and Alcaraz are going to have similar dominant careers as Federer, Nadal and Djokovic. 

 

I don't think so. The crop of early 80's and mid 80's was very special and apparently they have strong points that don't detoriate as quick as those of others. I remember a source telling me that Ross Brawn believed that Michael Schumachers reaction-time had weakened just that little bit between his departure and his come-back and he could not really rely on his ability to correct mid-corner transitions (which used to be his biggest strength and difference from other drivers). Bernie Ecclestone said that Jochen Rindt's greatest ability was that he could see like a hawk: incredibly sharp in all circumstances. You can still be fit enough run to do an Ironman (I think Ricciardo could) but never the less have lost something that just pushes over the fatal domino to the next. 

Edited by Nemo1965, Yesterday, 09:37.

[GhostR]

So reading what Lawson has been saying about when he knew etc ... Have to say, I really don't like how Red Bull and VCARB have handled it. They should have just come right out, ahead of Singapore, and said "this will be Ricciardo's last race with us, let's make it something special". The fact they didn't, and instead left it all dangling ... not great, IMO.

 

I have to think there was *something* that was still undecided ahead of the weekend that has since been signed off. Something significant that we may never know about that meant they couldn't just announce Ricciardo's exit.

[Marklar]

The overreaction is hilarious.

No one "deserves" a proper send off. Many far better drivers than him got a worse send off than him or none at all. 

This is a driver that has been probably among the 5 worst performing drivers on the grid since 2021, yet he was allowed to cash in big paydays and his popularity had him in contention for the best car in the field over better drivers. After he massively underperformed at McLaren Red Bull (who he left for a bigger payday after already agreeing on a new deal, talking about treating the other side well, eh?) took him in, gave him a well-paid ambassador role and a new shot in F1 (after he deemed Haas beneath him), which he didn't use.

Red Bull treated him exceptionally well. They don't deserve the grief they get over this.

Make no mistakes, Ricciardo was a good driver for some years, but there is nothing special about him that makes the reaction we see since yesterday even remotely justifiable.

F1 has always been a throat-cutting business, deal with it

Edited by Marklar, Yesterday, 11:28.

[Risil]

Handled better than Alain Prost's midseason departure from Ferrari in 1991

[Red5ive]

"A proper send-off at Austin" - what dressing him up in a cowboy outfit and sticking him on a horse again - classy.

 

Dont know why they didnt just stick the red nose on him and the big floppy shoes as well.

 

Thank God the circus has finally left town - way overdue.

[GhostR]

The overreaction is hilarious.

No one "deserves" a proper send off. Many far better drivers than him got a worse send off than him or none at all. 

This is a driver that has been probably among the 5 worst performing drivers on the grid since 2021, yet he was allowed to cash in big paydays and his popularity had him in contention for the best car in the field over better drivers. After he massively underperformed at McLaren Red Bull (who he left for a bigger payday after already agreeing on a new deal, talking about treating the other side well, eh?) took him in, gave him a well-paid ambassador role and a new shot in F1 (after he deemed Haas beneath him), which he didn't use.

Red Bull treated him exceptionally well. They don't deserve the grief they get over this.

Make no mistakes, Ricciardo was a good driver for some years, but there is nothing special about him that makes the reaction we see since yesterday even remotely justifiable.

F1 has always been a throat-cutting business, deal with it

 

I think the reason so many are pissed with Red Bull over this isn't so much that they didn't give him "a proper send off". It's that they completely undermined the entire weekend by leaking the news unofficially to all-and-sundry and then gagging Ricciardo.

 

I would have been happy with two scenarios:

 

1. They announced before the weekend that it would be Ricciardo's final weekend. That's all it needed to be. No need for them to do any send off, but they could have let him frame the weekend and talk openly with the press.

 

2. Not announce anything (either officially or unofficially), kept it entirely under wraps, and then announced it this week. Again, no need for any send offs. They could have let the Singapore weekend come and go without any of the awkwardness.

 

As it is, though, they went with this stupid approach of briefing it out through back channels and creating this really awkward "everyone knows but we'll pretend everything is normal" scenario. Which was exacerbated by allowing some interviews to drift off-point (Verstappen ahead of the race, RB statements and actions after the race) while still failing to treat the situation with the respect it should have been.

 

That's all we ask for: a little respect. They had two ways they could have let him go out with respect and dignity, and instead they elected to turn his final weekend into that totally unnecessarily awkward, (negatively) emotionally charged and, IMO, disrespectful mess.

 

 

Can absolutely understand why they've made the decision. Think it's clear Dan doesn't disagree with it himself. He was given a chance and didn't take it consistently enough, and Red Bull are now in a position where they need to make those difficult decisions. That's fine. Think we all knew this was coming once Red Bull decided to keep Perez post-Spa. Just didn't expect them to handle it like amateurs.

Edited by GhostR, Yesterday, 14:01.

[Nemo1965]

I think the reason so many are pissed with Red Bull over this isn't so much that they didn't give him "a proper send off". It's that they completely undermined the entire weekend by leaking the news unofficially to all-and-sundry and then gagging Ricciardo.

 

I would have been happy with two scenarios:

 

1. They announced before the weekend that it would be Ricciardo's final weekend. That's all it needed to be. No need for them to do any send off, but they could have let him frame the weekend and talk openly with the press.

 

2. Not announce anything (either officially or unofficially), kept it entirely under wraps, and then announced it this week. Again, no need for any send offs. They could have let the Singapore weekend come and go without any of the awkwardness.

 

As it is, though, they went with this stupid approach of briefing it out through back channels and creating this really awkward "everyone knows but we'll pretend everything is normal" scenario. Which was exacerbated by allowing some interviews to drift off-point (Verstappen ahead of the race, RB statements and actions after the race) while still failing to treat the situation with the respect it should have been.

 

That's all we ask for: a little respect. They had two ways they could have let him go out with respect and dignity, and instead they elected to turn his final weekend into that totally unnecessarily awkward, (negatively) emotionally charged and, IMO, disrespectful mess.

 

 

Can absolutely understand why they've made the decision. Think it's clear Dan doesn't disagree with it himself. He was given a chance and didn't take it consistently enough, and Red Bull are now in a position where they need to make those difficult decisions. That's fine. Think we all knew this was coming once Red Bull decided to keep Perez post-Spa. Just didn't expect them to handle it like amateurs.

 

Have you considered that Red Bull wanted to take the decision after Singapore and keep it under wraps but that several outsources outside of Red Bull have been reporting/speculating that Ricciardo might be gone long before Singapore? Someone mentioned Alain Prost's departure in 1991, which was a totally unexpected bombshell for everyone outside of Ferrari. Why? No social media, of course, and newspapers and magazines worked very often sub rosa or off-the-record with their sources. Now the competition is that fierce (again social media) and there is so much leaking or manipulating of the narrative (see the Horny Horner-affair) that anything not yet confirmed is already out there. 

 

So who is to blame for dangling Ricciardo over the fire? Red Bull or... 

Edited by Nemo1965, Yesterday, 14:14.

[polaris]

in my view RB are on the way out completely. They stuffed up at the beginning of the year with the Horner saga and they continued to go from bad to worse with poor decisions and poor management. They haven't even got a proper driver lineup even though they have two teams to manipulate it. Why is Yuki there if he hasn't got any prospect of getting into the senior team. Thats what VCARB are there for right? Max wont stay for long the way things are going. and despite the feeder team they are talking about poaching drivers from other teams? Its not stacking up Helmut. I wouldn't be surprised if the parent company pulls out of F1 all together as its just going to start to hurt the company

Edited by polaris, Yesterday, 14:35.

[garoidb]

in my view RB are on the way out completely. They stuffed up at the beginning of the year with the Horner saga and they continued to go from bad to worse with poor decisions and poor management. They haven't even got a proper driver lineup even though they have two teams to manipulate it. Why is Yuki there if he hasn't got any prospect of getting into the senior team. Thats what VCARB are there for right? Max wont stay for long they way things are going. and despite the feeder team they are talking about poaching driver from other teams? Its not stacking up Helmut. I wouldn't be surprised if the parent company pulls out of F1 all together as its just going start to hurt the company

 

Yuki is there because of Honda. I don't think he was ever under consideration for the senior team. He is not the competition for those seats and, IMO, will probably leave when Honda leaves. 

 

I think Red Bull will have to somewhat emerge from the ashes when this all plays out and they end up in 2026 without Newey, Verstappen or the next homegrown elite driver. That will be the challenge for Horner, and it will be fascinating to see how he meets it. The causal reason, though, is not the Horner saga but the death of Dieter Mateschitz and the ensuing power vacuum. All teams have to fundamentally change when the founder dies or is replaced. It was inevitable and it is survivable. 

[Sterzo]

As it is, though, they went with this stupid approach of briefing it out through back channels and creating this really awkward "everyone knows but we'll pretend everything is normal" scenario.

Did they though? Do we know this to be true?

 

If it did leak, was it a rogue individual who leaked it without Red Bull's authority? Any chance it was leaked by someone close to Dan? Or that there was no leak but the journalists (and maybe anyone who reads the forum) were expecting it?

 

In the past, I have sacked people and been sacked myself. Never did the employer put out an announcement; that would be left up to the individual as a matter of courtesy.

 

On a more general point (and not related to your post GhostR), of course Red Bull may be at fault. But as a rule of thumb, if we are denouncing people we should be sure of the facts first. And if we are sure of the facts, I ain't seen them here on this forum.

[messy]

I feel like they probably should have announced this prior to the race, but I don't understand the outrage really. If a driver decides to retire (or he and his team mutually "decide"), then he takes control of his send-off, but if he gets dropped from his team then there's really no such thing as a "great send-off" because it has to be everyone's intention. Ricciardo wanted to carry on, Red Bull decided (fairly) that he wouldn't. That's life. He got that fastest lap. I just think it would have been better for all parties if they'd announced it but its not the massive deal it's being blown up into.

[polaris]

If i was Audi I would give DR a call. 

[Red5ive]

If i was Audi I would give DR a call. 

 

 

Why ? Do you really want to see him fail and get fired at a third team ?

[Sterzo]

If i was Audi I would give DR a call. 

If I was DR I would give Audi a call.

[garoidb]

There are a lot of theories about how Ricciardo lost his form since Renault, or, negatively, that he wasn't that good in the first place. I think too many people just assume that because Alonso and Hamilton are still so good in and against their forties, that is the new standard. Just like tennisfans are kind of assuming that Janik Sinner and Alcaraz are going to have similar dominant careers as Federer, Nadal and Djokovic. 

 

I don't think so. The crop of early 80's and mid 80's was very special and apparently they have strong points that don't detoriate as quick as those of others. I remember a source telling me that Ross Brawn believed that Michael Schumachers reaction-time had weakened just that little bit between his departure and his come-back and he could not really rely on his ability to correct mid-corner transitions (which used to be his biggest strength and difference from other drivers). Bernie Ecclestone said that Jochen Rindt's greatest ability was that he could see like a hawk: incredibly sharp in all circumstances. You can still be fit enough run to do an Ironman (I think Ricciardo could) but never the less have lost something that just pushes over the fatal domino to the next. 

 

We don't really know yet how Lewis will go in his forties, which will be his Ferrari career. Some of the assumptions about Lewis's ultimate career-span at the top are based on projecting Fernando's longevity onto him. There are also people who think that Fernando is just getting away with it somehow (but they have always thought that  ). The mid to late thirties are a completely normal time to retire* from F1. 

 

* or run out of opportunities in F1.

Edited by garoidb, Yesterday, 16:03.

[BRG]

Did WIlliams give Logan a great send-off?

[MikeTekRacing]

Did WIlliams give Logan a great send-off?

he did go out in flames in practice that weekend. Does that count?

[JRodrigues]

If I was DR I would give Audi a call.

 

If I was Audi, I wouldn't answer.

[pacificquay]

Ricciardo accepts his F1 career is over, it's baffling why some on here don't.

[garoidb]

Ricciardo accepts his F1 career is over, it's baffling why some on here don't.

 

There's a difference between accepting his F1 career is probably over and definitively ending it. Announcing your retirement signals your unavailability for future opportunities, particularly immediate ones. Is that the situation?

[RainyAfterlifeDaylight]

My recommendation for all RedBull-RB drivers, is that DON'T do fastest lap when you are outside of top 10, if you did, there is a high chance of losing your seat because you just would have the best ceremonial Goodbye from your team.

 

Save your career by avoiding the fastest lap outside of top 10!   

Edited by RainyAfterlifeDaylight, Yesterday, 17:08.

[BRG]

If I was Audi, I wouldn't answer.

"Hello, you have reached Audi GMBH.  There is no-one available to answer your call.  Don't bother leaving a message."

[JeanAlesi27]

This proper send off crap is hilarious.. 

[404KF2]

Nothing too serious. Horner and Brown even made up on the plane.

Was it in the toilet? Asking for a friend

[MichaelPM]

He left RB because they wanted him to be a #2 driver for Max.

He leaves again after doing the job of a clear #4 driver for Max.

[Outsider]

in the beginning of last year people made fun of McLaren (because they had unfairly treated Ricciardo by sacking him), that they had 0 points and how much better Ricciardo was without them. where are those people now? I thought i felt sorry for him... and then I was reminded that there is no reason to feel sorry. if already 2 teams have understood he is not the fit, but he himself hasn't ("i never left" etc statements) and he still dreams about fairytale endings in RB, then perhaps he should be a little realistic for a while.  he is a man child, making "jokes" that people might find his dead body in the pool, after so many drowning deaths (someone said that it's childish and immature and that sums up all his personality). anyone actually remember how his career started? he replaced Karthikeyan midseason, did he get a "proper" send off?

[WouterF1]

Was it in the toilet? Asking for a friend

Just tell your friend: They were both in their airplane pajamas!

 

[WouterF1]

in the beginning of last year people made fun of McLaren (because they had unfairly treated Ricciardo by sacking him), that they had 0 points and how much better Ricciardo was without them. where are those people now? I thought i felt sorry for him... and then I was reminded that there is no reason to feel sorry. if already 2 teams have understood he is not the fit, but he himself hasn't ("i never left" etc statements) and he still dreams about fairytale endings in RB, then perhaps he should be a little realistic for a while.  he is a man child, making "jokes" that people might find his dead body in the pool, after so many drowning deaths (someone said that it's childish and immature and that sums up all his personality). anyone actually remember how his career started? he replaced Karthikeyan midseason, did he get a "proper" send off?

I hate this smile. Can't he smile in a normal way? He even smiles when he has to answer a serious question.

 

[Marklar]

in the beginning of last year people made fun of McLaren (because they had unfairly treated Ricciardo by sacking him), that they had 0 points and how much better Ricciardo was without them. where are those people now? I thought i felt sorry for him... and then I was reminded that there is no reason to feel sorry. if already 2 teams have understood he is not the fit, but he himself hasn't ("i never left" etc statements) and he still dreams about fairytale endings in RB, then perhaps he should be a little realistic for a while. he is a man child, making "jokes" that people might find his dead body in the pool, after so many drowning deaths (someone said that it's childish and immature and that sums up all his personality). anyone actually remember how his career started? he replaced Karthikeyan midseason, did he get a "proper" send off?

that's the thing. Whether you get a good send off depends a lot on the driver himself chosing the right time to "go". Hardly anyone gets a good send off if due to their performances (or in some cases politics) the decision was made by others especially if the decision is made after the season or if it's a mid-season sacking.

Ricciardo actually enjoyed special treatment by getting something like a send off despite a mid-season sacking. I dont remember anyone else getting that.

[Outsider]

I hate this smile. Can't he smile in a normal way? He even smiles when he has to answer a serious question.

 

 

i have no problem with anyone's smile, however, when asked a serious question you cannot stop laughing or throwing f-bombs, cause it's funny for you.. that man is 35 years old, joking that he is gonna drown himself in the pool shows not very high level of IQ or EI

Edited by Outsider, Yesterday, 19:30.

[JordanIreland]

If i was Audi I would give DR a call.

Audi have enough troubles. DR would only add more problems and question marks.

[AndyPerry]

i have no problem with anyone's smile, however, when asked a serious question you cannot stop laughing or throwing f-bombs, cause it's funny for you.. that man is 35 years old, joking that he is gonna drown himself in the pool shows not very high level of IQ or EI

He never seemed very bright to me. Probably one of the reasons why he flopped like he did.

[GiorgioF1]

Audi, please steer clear from this guy. No, seriously - take your 10-foot pole you wouldn't touch him with, throw it away and RUN. And to be safe get his number from someone else just to block it.

[NotAPineapple]

Audi could be a good destination for Ricciardo. They are going to be at the bottom of the grid for at least 2 years so a marketing superstar and a halfway solid driver would do them good.

Though if they ever develop a decent car they will obviously need to get a proper driver.

[JeanAlesi27]

Audi could be a good destination for Ricciardo. They are going to be at the bottom of the grid for at least 2 years so a marketing superstar and a halfway solid driver would do them good.

Though if they ever develop a decent car they will obviously need to get a proper driver.

 

His time is done.  They have Hulkenburg who is driving in top form... they need someone on his level,  at least... Daniel is nowhere near it.    

[krapmeister]

I think Daniel accepts his F1 career is done, and I doubt Audi would be wanting him anyway - even with the marketing upside.

[BoDarvelle]

This proper send off crap is hilarious.. 

 

Welcome to the world of people that grew up with participation trophies.