Daniel Ricciardo shares what left him ‘disappointed’ with Jacques Villeneuve’s criticism

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Daniel Ricciardo’s future has been a hot topic since Red Bull brought him back to race for sister team Visa Cash App RB last year.

Ricciardo has previously stated that his end goal is to get back to Red Bull and challenge for titles again, but so far his underwhelming season at RB is leading some to question if he still has what it takes.

Former F1 driver Jaques Villeneuve leveled criticism at Ricciardo during the Canadian Grand Prix weekend, whereby he questioned why he was still in F1 and made an indirect dig over his helmet design choices instead of focusing on good performances.

Daniel Ricciardo retorted by putting his RB in fifth place during qualifying that weekend and has since reflected on the war of words between him and the 1996 World Champion when speaking to The Mirror.

Daniel Ricciardo responds to Jaques Villenueve criticism

Jacques Villeneuve is known for having strong opinions of drivers when they are underperforming, having previously stated that Sergio Perez left him “extremely disappointed” following his difficult race at Spa.

Ricciardo responded in a war of words by saying in a press conference during the Canadian GP weekend he would not give Villeneuve “the time of day,” while the Canadian branded his remarks “unprofessional” and childish.”

The Australian has since found some consistency in his form recently and reflected on the criticism from the former world champion.

“Normally I don’t read it, but the team makes you aware of it, to prepare me for things that have been said. It does work me up… this is a world champion as well, in Jacques’ case, it’s someone who knows the sport,” said Ricciardo.

“I could comment on other drivers and be like, ‘Yeah, he’s gone through a rough patch’, but I would never talk s— about someone because I can relate and I know what they’ve gone through. No-one can strap themselves and do this, it’s such a rare sport.

“I was more disappointed, but I thought, ‘If some people think that way, time for me to remind them that I’m still here’. I used it to my advantage, but it’s fine. I know people have opinions. I just thought, ‘Don’t get agitated, get motivated’.”

Could Daniel Ricciardo lose his F1 seat?

The Australian faces crunch time in his F1 career while Perez underperforms. Red Bull was expected to replace Perez after the summer break following a miserable Belgian GP whereby he finished in eighth from second on the grid.

Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko felt he “completely collapsed” in the race, but it is understood that Red Bull felt there was no alternative that could have done a better job between either Ricciardo or Liam Lawson.

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

Ricciardo has since admitted that his ‘big downfall’ so far this season has been his performances in qualifying, which have often seen him line up towards the rear of the field.

He has only reached Q3 three times at the midway point this season, having been eliminated in Q1 the same amoutn of times. Teammate Yuki Tsunoda has reached Q3 eight times with only three Q1 exits.

The Australian will need to pick up his form if he wants to impress Red Bull bosses in the last 10 races before the end of the season, when a further evaluation of their driver lineup could take place ahead of 2025.