Daniel Ricciardo told next career step as RB driver has ‘no business’ on F1 grid

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Daniel Ricciardo has been urged to quit Formula 1 when his contract with Visa Cash App RB expires and make a major career change as he has ‘no business’ on the grid.

Question marks continue to persist over the Australian’s future with the Faenza outfit after a mixed year so far. Ricciardo kicked off the 2024 Formula 1 campaign on the wrong foot but started to find form before the summer break. Yet he must progress that rise to stay in 2025.

Ricciardo is only under contract at RB for 2024 after signing a one-year deal last September following his mid-season return. The 35-year-old started the campaign on the sidelines but a return to Formula 1 arrived when Red Bull lost faith in Nyck de Vries after just 10 Grand Prix.

Daniel Ricciardo told to quit Formula 1 and become a commentator

It was always believed that Red Bull placed Ricciardo at RB whilst their junior team were still AlphaTauri with the view to replacing Sergio Perez when his contract expired. But Ricciardo’s lacklustre results for much of 2024 preceded the Milton Keynes crew extending Perez’s deal.

Ricciardo did not score points in a main race before round nine in P8 for the Canadian Grand Prix. Before that, his best result was Ricciardo’s P4 finish in the F1 Sprint at the Miami Grand Prix. He has also only finished in the points since for the Austrian (P9) and Belgian (P10) GPs.

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

So, with 12 points from 14 Grand Prix plus four Sprints, Tim Coronel claims it is now time that Ricciardo admits his Formula 1 career is over. The Dutch racing hero says Ricciardo threw his Formula 1 career away leaving Red Bull in 2018, so should consider being a co-commentator.

“A few years ago, when Daniel Ricciardo left Red Bull and went for the money at Renault, I already knew – he chose the money and not his racing heart,” Coronel told Formule1. “He can’t do it anymore.

“He didn’t succeed at McLaren, he didn’t succeed at AlphaTauri and he will never succeed again. Then I think, ‘Be honest with yourself’. He is an ideal co-commentator or analyst for motorsport. He is funny, has flair and can handle everything well.

“Go ahead and do that, but stop with Formula 1. He has no business being in a training team anyway. Formula 1 is the class for the top 20 drivers in the world, and he has not been part of that for a long time.”

Yuki Tsunoda is dominating Daniel Ricciardo at Visa Cash App RB in 2024

Ricciardo elected to walk away from Red Bull and signed with Renault ahead of his contract expiring back in 2018. But the switch to Enstone only returned two podiums in two seasons before signing with McLaren, where continued issues suiting their car plagued two seasons.

The 2021 Italian Grand Prix yielded Ricciardo’s best day at McLaren as he returned the team to winning ways in a one-two with Lando Norris nine years after their previous victory. Yet it was a red herring as Ricciardo could still never master how the McLaren’s front end worked.

READ MORE: F1 2024 teammate head-to-head battles including race, Sprint and qualifying

Now, Ricciardo is mired in F1’s midfield with Visa Cash App RB and losing the head-to-head battle with teammate Yuki Tsunoda heavily. The 24-year-old with zero podiums to his name is often leading his 32-time podium-finishing and eight-time Grand Prix-winning teammate.

Tsunoda has scored more points than Ricciardo in the 2024 Formula 1 season with 22 to 12, has finished eight of the 14 Grand Prix in front of the Australian, out-qualified his teammate nine times and taken points in seven of the 14 Grand Prix compared to his colleague’s three.