Two years after his final Grand Prix, Daniel Ricciardo is speaking openly about the hurt behind his F1 exit and finding room to feel proud of everything that came before it.
Daniel Ricciardo still dislikes how his Formula 1 career ended. What has changed is how he sees the years before it.
Speaking to Tom Clarkson on the October 28 episode of F1’s Beyond The Grid podcast, Ricciardo described the difficult adjustment after losing his seat following the 2024 Singapore Grand Prix. Behind the familiar public smile, he said, were feelings of failure, sadness and humiliation.
Now, he can look back with greater pride.
That shift is the most compelling part of his story. An ending he didn’t choose no longer has to carry the meaning of his entire career.
The smile didn’t tell the whole story
Ricciardo explained that appearing to enjoy himself in public didn’t reflect what he was feeling privately. He struggled with falling short of his own expectations and losing the chance to finish the season.
The standards that had helped drive his career also made him harsh on himself when it ended.
There’s something recognizable in that, even far from a Formula 1 paddock. When a job or ambition has shaped years of your life, losing it can leave a question that a record of achievements doesn’t immediately answer: what happens now?
Finding life beyond the next race
This adjustment has been gradual.
In August 2025, Ricciardo was already talking about discovering who he was outside racing. His departure had closed a career spanning 257 starts, eight victories and 32 podium finishes, but those numbers couldn’t provide a ready-made direction for his everyday life.
The new podcast describes travel, reconnecting with friends and time spent reflecting as parts of that process.
He also acknowledged that, while the manner of his departure still troubles him, he now feels some gratitude that the decision was made for him.
Both feelings can exist together. Appreciating life afterward doesn’t require pretending the ending was easy.
A career bigger than its final chapter
“I am definitely proud,” Ricciardo said.
It’s a simple statement, but it gives this interview its weight. He can acknowledge the disappointment without allowing it to erase what he achieved.
Fans will remember the victories, the overtakes and the personality. Ricciardo is finding his own way to look back at them, too.
Singapore remains the ending of his Formula 1 career. It no longer has to be the only part he sees.
