'Broken' Daniel Ricciardo 'not in a happy place' as Guenther Steiner ...

Daniel Ricciardo looked “broken” and “not in a happy place” before his VCARB F1 exit was confirmed following the Singapore Grand Prix.

That is the view of former Haas team principal Guenther Steiner, who says Ricciardo “doesn’t need to put himself through this pain” anymore.

VCARB announced on Thursday that Ricciardo has been replaced for the final six races of the F1 2024 season by Liam Lawson, who will step up from a Red Bull reserve role to partner Yuki Tsunoda from next month’s United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas.

The decision is expected to mark the end of Ricciardo’s career, with the 35-year-old treated to a guard of honour in the paddock after the race in Singapore.

Ricciardo has been one of the most prominent drivers of the last decade, claiming all but one of his eight career victories with Red Bull between 2014 and 2018 before spells at Renault and McLaren.

Having been dropped by McLaren since the end of the 2022 season, Ricciardo returned to a race seat in mid-2023 but had largely disappointed since his comeback, scoring points just four times in 26 appearances for VCARB (previously AlphaTauri).

PlanetF1.com understands that Ricciardo has the option to remain involved with Red Bull in some capacity, but is yet to reach a decision.

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Appearing on the Red Flags podcast, Steiner claimed it would undersell Ricciardo to remember him only for his crowd-pleasing exploits on Drive to Survive, Netflix’s highly acclaimed F1 docuseries, having enjoyed a respectable career in the sport.

And he is convinced that his F1 exit may prove a blessing in disguise, with Ricciardo “not in a happy place” after struggling to recapture his best form over recent years.

Steiner said: “I think with Danny, we shouldn’t only think of him for what he did with Drive to Survive.

“He won races in F1. I think he’s still a good driver [but] obviously he’s not in a happy place.

“I watched him in Singapore after qualifying – he was on TV doing an interview – and he was not in a happy place.

“I was like: ‘Whoa, Danny. You’re not enjoying this.’

“So sometimes when you don’t enjoy something, it’s better that you leave because there’s a life for him after this.

“He was a very good race car driver, he won races.

“He was racing against Max [Verstappen] and then decided to move on from Red Bull, which in the end was a brave decision, and worked out for a while, and then he just got the stuck in some place and couldn’t do it anymore.

“He’s just a nice guy. He’s very open. He doesn’t seem to be upset about things [very often].

“When I saw him speaking after Singapore qualifying, he was just broken, so there’s no point to put yourself through this pain.

“He doesn’t need to do that.”

Steiner felt the Singapore Grand Prix weekend hit home the extent of Ricciardo’s decline, with the eight-time race winner eliminated in Q1 as Tsunoda qualified eighth.

And he has advised the Perth-born star to “retire” to his ranch in Western Australia to take stock before deciding on his next step.

He explained: “We cannot get around [the fact that] at the moment he’s not performing to what he’s actually capable of.

“We saw it again in Singapore: he was out in Q1 – he was very disappointed, couldn’t believe it – while Tsunoda goes into Q3 in the same car, so it is one of these things is.

“He looks so unhappy, so, I do not think that it would hurt him personally if he’s now leaving for a time.

“He’s 35. I don’t know if he’s coming back or not, but he can do a lot of other great things even in motor racing.

“There’s a lot of good things to do out there and as a character he’s a cool dude, so there’s a lot [of life] in him still.

“But he can decide what he wants to do, I think. I think he just should reflect on that and not be [upset].

“He has done a lot of stuff, so he needs to be proud of that and doesn’t need to feel broken or whatever. Get on with your life, Danny.

“It’s pretty cool what he’s doing. He’s made good money, I’m sure, and there’s a lot of things to do for him.

“I would go [home]. He told me he’s got a big ranch in Western Australia. Go there. Just retire there a little bit.

“The good thing there is they are well off with the time [difference to Europe], so he doesn’t have to worry and just can relax.

“When other people are sleeping, he’s up. Just enjoy that for the time being and then something will come.

“One door closes, two open up.”

Speaking after the race in Singapore, Ricciardo ruled out the prospect of returning to a reserve role at Red Bull, having briefly held the position following his exit from McLaren at the end of 2022.

And conceded that he can no longer keep up with the new breed of F1 drivers, with today’s youngsters better equipped to race in Formula 1 due to advances in technology – including the rise of driver-in-the-loop simulators – over recent years.

He told reporters: “Obviously, last year [a reserve role] made a lot of sense to keep one foot in the door and obviously the big picture was to try and get back at Red Bull.

“I think if I was to do that again, there’s not really [much point]. I’m not going to restart my career.

“I’m also 35 and I still showed the pace that I’ve had over the years, but it’s obviously been evident that it’s been harder for me to show it every weekend.

“And maybe that is a little bit of an age thing. I think it definitely came easier for me when I was 25 as opposed to 35, but also maybe the competition is just increasing.

“I think that’s probably a common thing with all sports: simulators are getting better, the kids are getting younger, so naturally they’re [more prepared].

“And they have access to all the onboards now, so they can watch and study everyone.

“So maybe it’s just that the level’s increased and it’s probably a tall task for me to fight at that level week in, week out.

“I can’t be disappointed with that. I’m happy that, once upon a time, I could do it and that was a lot of fun.

“And if this is it, I want to make sure I walk away or leave the sport with good memories of it and it doesn’t get into that place where it’s just a grind and I’m out in Q1 every weekend.

“That’s obviously not fun.”

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