Daniel Ricciardo has yet to decide where he'll move to next in his racing life, but the Aussie admits that he might be challenged to find elsewhere the same kind of fulfillment he has experienced in the world of Formula 1.
Red Bull's decision to drop the 35-year-old F1 veteran in favor of young gun Liam Lawson has left Ricciardo contemplating a change of scenery.
While an eerie silence will now follow the familiar hum of the F1 paddock, it's unlikely Ricciardo will sail off into the sunset, never to be seen again behind the wheel of a racing machine.
“IndyCar still scares me!” Ricciardo said, quoted by RACER . “I mean, I've thought about it because I also thought about it a couple of years ago when I knew that I wasn't going to start the '23 season.
“I don't know. I know I'm still a competitor. I know I still have a lot of fire in me. Maybe that itch is scratched doing something else, I don't know. We'll see.
Ricciardo's musings are honest and candid, a reminder of the complexities that come with being at the top and then facing the unknown.
He has tasted the highs of Formula 1 – the victories, the dazzling overtakes, the moments of triumph on the podium – and it's understandably difficult to imagine another form of racing offering the same rush.
“It's hard,” he continued. “Even talking about being in the sport and fighting for even a 10th place every now and then…
“It's maybe the same with doing another series, and no disrespect to other series — I'm a fan of NASCAR and a lot of other forms of motorsport — but because I've been there and experienced the highest of highs, will I get true fulfillment doing something else?
“No guarantee I'll be awesome doing something else. Is that actually going to scratch the itch and give me what I want? I don't know. “I'd probably say more no than yes.”
Despite his uncertainty about racing in another category, Ricciardo wasn't entirely unsettled by the prospect of stepping away from the sport.
His brief hiatus after leaving McLaren had given him a taste of life outside the paddock, and it had opened his eyes to new possibilities.
“Oh, outside racing, yeah,” he said confidently. “Because I've already experienced a bit of it, I don't have a fear of not swiping into the paddock.
“I've loved it and it is great, but I've also fortunately made friends with other athletes over the years that have been in a similar position. What does kind of phase two of life look like?
Ricciardo's words reveal a man who is more introspective than his playful persona often lets on. He isn't afraid of what the future holds—whether that means staying in motorsport in some capacity or walking away entirely.
"I think there's a lot to do, a lot of opportunities," he mused. "It's not anything I'm scared of."
As he stands on the brink of a new chapter, Ricciardo's next steps remain uncertain. The fire to compete still burns within him, but whether that passion will lead him to another racing series or down an entirely different path, only time would tell.
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