The eight-time grand prix winner lost his seat to Liam Lawson late in the 2024 season, bringing an end to a career that spanned 257 starts across 14 seasons.
Speaking on Ford CEO Jim Farley’s podcast, Ricciardo reflected candidly on the toll of his final years in F1 and the circumstances that led to his exit.
“Ultimately, I got let go,” he said.
“That was the reality at the time. I think once that happened, I’d been let go twice in the last two years, and it had also taken a lot out of me.
“I’d put a lot of my soul into it. I was pretty exhausted by it.
“In reflection, I was grateful that they made the decision for me. I think it would have been hard to be like, ‘I’m done.’”
Ricciardo’s departure marked the end of a turbulent final chapter to his F1 career that began when McLaren released him at the end of 2022 to make way for Oscar Piastri.
A mid-2023 return with Red Bull’s junior outfit offered a lifeline, but a broken hand and inconsistent form ultimately left him vulnerable.
By the time he was replaced following the Singapore Grand Prix in 2024, Ricciardo acknowledged he had already sensed the end was near.
“I think I knew I was probably done because I knew it was harder for me to perform at the level I could,” he said.
“For whatever reason, I lost a little bit of something, and it’s okay to admit it.”
The 36-year-old added that despite many on the outside believing he was still capable of competing at the top level, he understood the importance of accepting where he was at in his career.
“There’s people that love you and will still tell you that you’re great and you can do it, but as much as you love them as well, you need to just close the door and make that decision on your own and be really honest with yourself,” he said.
“If I would have got to the end of last year, I think I would have still had a lot of these thoughts and had had the conversation with myself, because I knew it was becoming harder for me, and I had to dig really deep to pull out a result that I was proud of.
“You always want to believe everyone’s looking out for you, and they probably still are, but they don’t know what it’s like to be you and in your situation.
“Last year, my retirement year, I gave myself a lot of time to just reflect on my career and to be at peace with it.”
Since stepping away from F1, Ricciardo has shifted his focus toward life outside the cockpit, including time in Australia and work with Ford as a global ambassador, while also developing his Enchanté fashion brand.
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