Ricciardo lost his “killer instinct” after leaving Red Bull

Helmut Marko believes that Daniel Ricciardo has lost his “killer instinct” in the years away from Red Bull and explained the Australian’s departure from RB.

On Thursday, it was confirmed that Ricciardo will be replaced by reserve driver Liam Lawson in Red Bull’s RB team for the remainder of 2024. The New Zealander will switch to Yuki Tsunoda from the US Grand Prix in Austin.

The news effectively marks the end of a 14-year career in Formula 1 for 35-year-old Ricciardo, who is now considering his future in racing.

As a junior at Red Bull, Ricciardo rose through the ranks to compete for the main team between 2014 and 2018. During this time, he developed into one of Formula 1’s standout performers, taking seven victories alongside Sebastian Vettel and the fast-rising Max Verstappen.

Ricciardo was persuaded by Renault team boss Cyril Abiteboul to move to the Enstone-based team in 2019, but struggled to repeat his success with Red Bull in uncompetitive machinery.

After two unsuccessful seasons, Ricciardo moved to McLaren. But despite his eighth victory at the 2021 Italian Grand Prix, he endured two frustrating seasons trying to adapt to the team’s machinery before being released a year before his contract expired in 2022.

In an exclusive interview with Motorsport.com’s sister site Motorsport-Total.com, Marko said he felt Ricciardo’s career never recovered from his departure from Red Bull, saying the Australian had lost his “killer instinct” over time.

Daniel Ricciardo, RB F1 Team VCARB 01

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

“I think the decision to leave Red Bull Racing was the turning point of his career,” said Marko. “Then he had no winning car at either Renault or McLaren. He did win at Monza, but those were special circumstances.”

“I don’t know what exactly happened because if we had known, we would have helped him. But the speed and especially that late braking, and then he goes left or right… in these last years he tried, but it was no longer there, the killer instinct was gone.”

Marko believes that both question marks over his status alongside Verstappen and the strength of Red Bull’s Honda engines played a role in Ricciardo’s move from Red Bull to Renault.

“He had some reservations about the Honda engine and apparently listened more to the sweet words of Renault and Cyril Abiteboul,” explained Marko. “Financially, there was not much difference between what Renault offered him and what we offered.”

“I also told him: ‘Shoeys will be tough for you.’ I don’t think we’ve seen Renault on the podium very often.

“He came to us and beat Vettel in 2014 by three wins to zero. After that, Daniil Kvyat was faster than him at times, but as the season went on he also had him under control.

“And then Max came along and became stronger and stronger. That was certainly one of the reasons why he chose Renault and not us.”

Amid disquiet among fans over the way Ricciardo’s exit was communicated, spilling over into the Singapore weekend ahead of Thursday’s official announcement, Marko says Ricciardo was informed of what was going to happen and felt his fastest lap was a fitting send-off.

“(The timing) depended on various factors and commitments,” he explained. “He was informed and the fitting farewell performance was, I think, the fastest lap.”

“It still showed what potential he has. It wasn’t consistent and not at the level that would have justified a move to Red Bull Racing, but it was an impeccable performance.”

“I think it was clearly communicated that he had to be significantly better than Yuki Tsunoda and he only managed that in a few races. So it was clear that this story of the prodigal son returning to Red Bull Racing unfortunately didn’t work.

“He has clearly stated that he is at peace with himself and has come to terms with the situation. We will see what his plans are for the future.”