Daniel Ricciardo pinpoints the moment his ‘year started’ after early 2024 struggles

Follow us on Google Discover

It’s not been the easiest return to Formula 1 for Daniel Ricciardo after replacing Nyck de Vries halfway through the 2023 campaign.

Ricciardo admitted he thought his F1 career was over in 2022 when he was dropped by McLaren for the incredibly exciting Oscar Piastri.

However, it was only a few months later that Christian Horner was recalling Daniel Ricciardo to test for Red Bull with De Vries struggling during his rookie F1 campaign.

Ricciardo returned to the grid with AlphaTauri at the Hungarian Grand Prix but three races later he was on the sidelines once again after picking up a hand injury trying to avoid Piastri’s stranded McLaren at Zandvoort.

With a full pre-season under his belt in 2024, Ricciardo was expected to kick on and achieve his dream of returning to Red Bull.

Unfortunately, the season didn’t start as expected and the renamed RB team were relying on Yuki Tsunoda to score their points.

In an interview with Motorsport.com, Ricciardo explained the moment that his form turned around this season.

Ricciardo was pointless after the five races, but a fantastic performance in Sprint Qualifying for the Miami Grand Prix saw him start on the second row of the grid and he converted that into a 4^th-place finish.

However, Ricciardo believes his form really changed when he changed his chassis at the Chinese Grand Prix.

There were question marks over where a new chassis would help Ricciardo within the RB team but his form has certainly improved since the change.

The Australian needs to continue to show signs of improvement with his Formula 1 future on the line.

READ MORE: Visa Cash App RB driver Daniel Ricciardo’s life outside F1 from net worth to girlfriend

Daniel Ricciardo pinpoints Chinese Grand Prix as turning point in 2024 F1 season

Speaking about how this season has progressed, Ricciardo said: “We’ve certainly had a bit of a different tempo this season.

“I think Yuki hasn’t really had as many lows, his levels have been strong from really start to finish and it took me a little bit to find it.

“Obviously, the chassis change in China is where my year started to show a little bit more promise.

“But from that point on, I definitely felt a little bit more at one with a car and I started getting a little bit of that belief back.

“To still have the speed, that’s been really critical. And now it’s just making sure that I can extract it more often, which I have done, but of course, I always want more out of myself.”

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Visa Cash App RB F1 Team from team principal to Red Bull relationship

Daniel Ricciardo could be a Red Bull driver or off the grid in 2025

Ricciardo is in a unique position on the grid currently, not knowing if he’s about to see his F1 career come to an end or earn an unlikely promotion to the Red Bull team.

The Australian driver is one of a handful of drivers fighting for the four remaining seats on the grid for 2025.

He faces pressure from Liam Lawson who has been promised a race seat next year.

However, Sergio Perez is also under serious pressure having underperformed at Red Bull for months.

While Perez survived the summer break and has a contract that runs until at least the end of 2025, he’s in real danger of being replaced.

Ricciardo is a prime candidate to step into Perez’s seat, but could quite easily also be dropped at the end of the current campaign.