RB boss Laurent Mekies admits the way the team handled Daniel Ricciardo’s exit was “not ideal,” according to Motorsports.com Saturday.
F1 fans were upset that they weren’t able to give Ricciardo a proper send-off because the team didn’t announce his exit until after the Singapore Grand Prix, where the Australian finished 18th in what turned out to be his final F1 race.
“Yes, it was frustrating, and yes, it was not ideal to go through the weekend in that way,” Mekies said of the late September weekend. “That is first of all for him, on a professional and on a personal matter, and for the whole team around him.”
However, Mekies revealed that both the RB team and Ricciardo discussed the options for announcing his departure and all agreed to keep the news from the public until after the Singapore Grand Prix.
“Daniel was aware,” Mekies said. “We did have discussions before the weekend. For many different reasons, we chose together to go into that weekend without announcing. And from that point onwards, we had to deal with it.
“It’s a decision that, in hindsight, we may or may not do differently. But it’s something that we were, both the team and the drivers, on board to go through that now.”
Mekies still believes Ricciardo was able to feel the appreciation of the fans and the RB team.
“I think in one way or another, we all found a way to express how much love there is from the sport to Daniel, from the fans to Daniel,” Mekies said.
“I don’t know if it would have been better or worse (to announce it), certainly different, more traditional, but I can hopefully say that the amount of love and empathy we felt through that weekend was something outstanding and something that shows that he’s bigger than an F1 driver, he’s bigger than F1.”
Ricciardo, 35, has 257 races under his belt, with eight wins and 32 podiums in his career. He is being replaced on the RB team by 22-year-old Liam Lawson of New Zealand.
Days after the race, Ricciardo hinted at the likely end of his career in an Instagram post.
“I’ve loved this sport my whole life. It’s wild and wonderful and been a journey. To the teams and individuals that have played their part, thank you,” he wrote. “To the fans who love the sports sometimes more than me haha thank you. It’ll always have its highs and lows but it’s been fun and truth be told, I wouldn’t change it. Until the next adventure.”
Ricciardo had been racing for Red Bull’s sister team RB since July 2023, hoping to be moved to Red Bull to pair with Max Verstappen. He struggled on the track this season and accumulated just 12 points, putting him in a distant 14th place in the standings.
Verstappen sits atop the standings with 331 points, while earlier this year, fellow Red Bull driver Sergio Perez (eighth place, 144 points) had his deal extended through 2026.
–Field Level Media
