The ongoing ‘discussion’ made headlines prior to the Canadian Grand Prix weekend when Jacques Villeneuve, the 1997 F1 World Champion and Indy 500 winner, questioned why Ricciardo was still participating in F1. Villeneuve suggested that Ricciardo’s presence in the sport was solely due to his popularity, as evidenced by his association with VCARB.
Real F1 enthusiasts, including this website, positively received Villeneuve’s remarks, while social media trolls took the opportunity to criticize Villeneuve. The Canadian driver brushed off the negativity by emphasizing that criticizing Ricciardo comes with consequences from his followers.
This entire incident added excitement to an already eventful weekend at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Jacques Villeneuve’s comments served as a wake-up call for Ricciardo, who defied his critics by securing the fifth position on the starting grid with VCARB. However, he struggled during the race but managed to hold on and finish in eighth place at the Grand Prix.
Sky F1’s leading pundit, Brundle, took note of the Villeneuve-Ricciardo dispute: “For the record, since my colleague Jacques Villeneuve from Sky Sports F1 expressed his strong opinions, I want to clarify that I have a deep respect for all F1 drivers, including Daniel and Jacques. I understand the immense challenges they face when driving such powerful cars under constant scrutiny. Daniel has achieved remarkable success with eight Grand Prix victories, including an outstanding win in Monaco, and has consistently showcased his world-class talent with 32 podium finishes,” Brundle commented.
“I do wish he hadn’t left Red Bull at the end of 2018,” Brundle admitted. “That decision was emotionally driven and flawed. He should have faced the challenge posed by Max in the best car, which would have undoubtedly pushed him to perform even better.
“Ricciardo never quite regained the same level of performance. Although he still demonstrates speed and racecraft, as seen in the Miami Sprint, there seems to be something in his mindset or approach that is holding him back, resulting in missed opportunities and a decline in longevity,” Brundle concluded.
StatsF1 supports Brundle’s theory, along with the majority of genuine F1 fans, that Ricciardo’s most successful days were with Red Bull. Seven of his victories were achieved with the team that supported his development in junior categories and facilitated his entry into F1 with HRT, where he competed in 11 races in 2011 before moving to Toro Rosso.
In 2014, Ricciardo was chosen to replace Mark Webber at Red Bull, becoming teammates with four-time F1 World Champion Sebastian Vettel, whom the cheerful Australian outperformed in their first season together. However, their partnership was eventually challenged by the arrival of Max Verstappen.
History shows that at the end of 2018, Ricciardo decided to leave the team, unable to match Verstappen’s performance, and pursued a lucrative deal with Renault, which turned out to be an underwhelming experience. Despite this setback, Ricciardo remains in the F1 field, hoping for better days, but continues to struggle against Yuki Tsunoda in the other VCARB.
It is difficult to dispute the claims made by Brundle and Villeneuve, as it is evident that Ricciardo has not been able to replicate the same level of performance he exhibited during his time with Red Bull a decade ago.