VCARB takes part of the responsibility for Ricciardo's F1 exit
F1 News
It was tough to watch, during the aftermath of the Singapore Grand Prix, F1 paddock's most charismatic character, Daniel Ricciardo, in tears in front of the media, already privy to his impending F1 exit announcement. Laurent Mekies, Racing Bulls team boss, has boarded the subject and states that while the team did their utmost to help the now former F1 driver, it also takes responsibility for Ricciardo's second stint in the sport not bearing the expected results.
Was Ricciardo's speed the issue? "This led to what happened"
Speaking to Autosport, the Frenchman clarifies if the issue with the Australian driver was ultimately his speed, or lack thereof. "The question we have been asked the most was: 'Can Daniel still produce the ultimate speed we have seen?' I think he has on a few occasions, in Miami, in Canada [fifth place in qualifying] and in quite a few other races. So, he did produce that ultimate speed that took him to race wins in the past," said VCARB'S team boss.
Mekies also highlighted that while there were instances where Ricciardo showed his former Red Bull brilliance, spurts of speed are not enough to maintain a seat in F1, while taking responsibility for the team's part in said inconsistency. "But for the team, as for the drivers, the biggest difficulty is not to be fast one day. It's to be fast in every race. Did we manage to keep Daniel in that sweet spot often enough? No, that's the reality. I raised my hand and we raised our hands as a team, because we have a big part to play in it. And this led to what happened."
"Daniel pushed and gave team background on what the car could do"
Speaking about the development of their F1 2024 contender, a process Mekies described as "never-ending", he lauded Ricciardo for his work. "Daniel pushed us to explore that envelope, and it gave the engineering team a very good background of what the car would and could not do." However, the Australian race winner's input also had an all-round impact on the team and then teammate, Yuki Tsunoda. "There was a huge benefit for the team and for Yuki in terms of Daniel's technical feedback, direction of development, race-winning approach."
Ricciardo's Red Bull Racing history also benefitted the team in terms of targetting higher results, but it helped Tsunoda's feedback providing skills as well. "That benefit has been huge, also in terms of car understanding and car development. And I think Yuki has been developing a good relationship with Daniel to the extent that he has been able to absorb quite a lot of that and to keep progressing himself in that area."
In the end, Ricciardo's exit was announced promptly after the Singapore Grand Prix Sunday, and Liam Lawson was promoted to a VCARB seat as early as the fllowing Grand Prix in Austin. The New Zealander has now been chosen by Red Bull Racing to partner Max Verstappen during the upcming F1 2025 season in Sergio Perez' place, who has now taken on an ambassadorial role within the team.