{"id":5363,"date":"2024-10-04T23:24:12","date_gmt":"2024-10-04T23:24:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/sport\/how-shy-aussie-kid-became-f1-golden-boy\/"},"modified":"2024-10-04T23:24:12","modified_gmt":"2024-10-04T23:24:12","slug":"how-shy-aussie-kid-became-f1-golden-boy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/sport\/how-shy-aussie-kid-became-f1-golden-boy\/","title":{"rendered":"How shy Aussie kid became F1 golden boy"},"content":{"rendered":"


\n<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n
\"FacebookFacebook<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The F1 star grew up in a motorsport-loving family<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
\n

As always, the Australian Grand Prix in 2006 was an eclectic buffet of fame and power – with everyone from actress Amanda Bynes to the Dutch Prime Minister, a 70s pop star, and the original Blue Wiggle treading pit lane. <\/p>\n

Unnoticed in a corner, making small talk with Italian driver Jarno Trulli and former Miss Universe Jennifer Hawkins, was none other than 16-year-old Daniel Ricciardo.<\/p>\n

The Perth boy had won a pass to the race \u2013 having been crowned Australian go-karting champion the year before \u2013 and on that day in April his world shifted.<\/p>\n

Family friend and then mentor Remo Luciani jokes it was meeting Hawkins that did it: \u201cHe was practically drooling.\u201d<\/p>\n

But while rubbing shoulders with Formula 1 stars and feeling the rumbling roar of their engines, the shy teen got his first real taste of the life he was doggedly chasing. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think he saw the picture – \u2018this is where I belong, this is what I want to do\u2019,\u201d Luciani tells the BBC.<\/p>\n

Fast forward a few years and he’d not only become part of that world, but \u201ca main character\u201d in it.<\/p>\n

But after 13 years in the sport \u2013 with an impressive 257 races, 32 podiums, and eight wins \u2013 his F1 career came to an end last week, after Red Bull dropped him from its team.<\/p>\n

He bows out as one of the most successful and popular drivers on the circuit and the golden boy of Australian motorsport.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Hungry and talented<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\"CoopersCoopers Photography<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Ricciardo in his #3 kart in 2004<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
\n

From the moment his motorsport-mad father let him on a go-kart track as a nine-year-old, Ricciardo has been making an impression.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere’s those who get it at that age, and those that don’t, and he got it pretty quickly,\u201d Tiger Kart Club stalwart John Wishart says.<\/p>\n

Ricciardo didn\u2019t blow the competition out of the water, but he quickly established himself as a fast but fair rival, with an infectious personality and fierce competitive spirit \u2013 a reputation he\u2019s hung on to his entire career.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat you see on the TV of Daniel today, he was exactly the same as a kid,\u201d childhood friend Lewis Shugar tells the BBC.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was always laughing and having a good time, and if things didn’t go right for him, he still had a smile on his face,\u201d Wishart says. \u201cThat in itself is a special talent.\u201d<\/p>\n

As he started to notch up race wins around Western Australia, chatter of his promise spread to the east coast.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\"DanielDaniel Ricciardo<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The driver has a very healthy trophy cabinet<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
\n

Ricciardo soon joined Remo Racing – a self-styled development squad run by Luciani in Victoria.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was a very, very quick learner, and he was determined. He wanted to always go faster. I could see the hunger in him,” says Luciani \u2013 himself a karting legend and Australian Motorsport Hall of Fame inductee.<\/p>\n

Ricciardo won his first race with the team in 2005 and went on to take out the national go-karting championship that year, while also racing Formula Ford cars in his home state.<\/p>\n

And with that, he was on his way overseas \u2013 a \u201cbig move\u201d that Ricciardo has said \u201cchanged everything\u201d.<\/p>\n

Each passing year brought a new step up the ladder. In 2006 he raced in Asia, before moving to Italy the year after, then signing to the Red Bull development programme as a “shy” and “immature” 18-year-old in 2008.<\/p>\n

“Having that responsibility, that pressure, all of that, it forced me to grow up,” he told CNN Sport earlier this month.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\"RemoRemo Racing<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Ricciardo (right) and his Remo Racing teammates<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
\n

In 2011 he made his long-awaited grand prix debut at Silverstone, on loan to Spanish team HRT, thrilling his supporters back home.<\/p>\n

One described him as beating one-in-10-million odds.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust to sit in an F1 car is something that hardly anybody will ever do \u2013 so even just to have that opportunity is incredible,\u201d Shugar says.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

The Honey Badger<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
\n

But Ricciardo wasn\u2019t satisfied with just any spot on the grid, and by 2014 he\u2019d earned a call up to the main Red Bull team, replacing fellow countryman Mark Webber.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m ready,\u201d Ricciardo declared at the time: \u201cI’m not here to run around in 10th place.\u201d<\/p>\n

True to his word, he won three races that year, outperforming teammate and defending champion Sebastian Vettel.<\/p>\n

Over his four years at Red Bull, he became known as the Honey Badger \u2013 for the affable demeanour which belied his killer racing instincts.<\/p>\n

\u201cHis trademark was these terrific late-braking moves that would catch drivers by surprise,\u201d Australian F1 journalist Michael Lamonato told the BBC.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe always said he wanted the kind of reputation that meant he would be feared when another driver would see him in their mirrors, and I think he really achieved that.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the same time, his popularity off the track was soaring, even before the hit Netflix series Drive to Survive took F1 to new levels of acclaim.<\/p>\n

\u201cDaniel was one of the characters that was beginning to transcend the sport,\u201d Lamonato says.<\/p>\n

His signature shoey celebration \u2013 which is credited with popularising the practice in Australia<\/a> \u2013 memeable media sound bites and humorous stunts have enamoured him to legions the world over.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe seems like a mate, someone you could make friends with at the pub,\u201d Melbourne fan Issy Futcher says.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe’s made for this kind of stardom.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\"GettyGetty Images<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Ricciardo celebrating his 2018 win in Monaco<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
\n

The pinnacle of his career came with a gutsy win in Monaco in 2018, when he defended his lead for 50 laps while battling a failing engine, two years after a botched pit stop at the same circuit saw victory slip through his fingers.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis was a redemption race\u2026 it really is his defining win,\u201d Lamonato says.<\/p>\n

But after ill-fated moves to Renault in 2019 and McLaren in 2021, where he struggled to replicate his previous success, he was left floundering in 2023 and returned to the broader Red Bull fold as a reserve driver.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

He re-joined the starting line-up in its junior team \u2013 now called RB \u2013 halfway through the season though was soon derailed by a broken wrist and his form never recovered throughout 2024.<\/p>\n

Rumours began to circulate and when the Singapore Grand Prix rolled around on 22 September, the writing was on the wall. In one last hurrah, Ricciardo was given a fresh set of tyres and set the fastest lap of the race.<\/p>\n

After finishing last, the 35-year-old lingered in the cockpit for a beat.<\/p>\n

In a teary post-race interview, Ricciardo said he was battling a lot of emotions.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m aware it could be it,\u201d he said. \u201cI just wanted to savour the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n

He had only wanted to return to the grid if he could get podiums and so was \u201cat peace\u201d with his impending fate, he told Sky Sports.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\"GettyGetty Images<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Ricciardo had a lacklustre 2024<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
\n

Days later, Red Bull confirmed he would be replaced for the rest of the season by young Kiwi Liam Lawson<\/a> <\/b>– news that stirred outrage and cries of mistreatment.<\/p>\n

Team boss Christian Horner said Ricciardo\u2019s statistics and accolades weren\u2019t the only measure of his success.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom the moment you arrived at Red Bull it was obvious you were so much more than just a driver. Your constant enthusiasm, sense of humour and attitude will leave an indelible legacy,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Amid a wave of tributes from his peers, Ricciardo said it had been a \u201cwild and wonderful\u201d journey.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve loved this sport my whole life\u2026 It\u2019ll always have its highs and lows, but it\u2019s been fun and truth be told I wouldn\u2019t change it,\u201d he wrote on Instagram.<\/p>\n

\u201cUntil the next adventure.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Legacy secured<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\"GettyGetty Images<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Ricciardo forced his trademark celebration on many, like poor Mark Webber<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
\n

While details of that next adventure are hotly anticipated, Lamonato says Ricciardo has already cemented himself as one of the most underrated F1 drivers. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe best way to sum up Daniel Ricciardo is a driver of immense potential who suffered what so many do, and that is career wrong turns.” <\/p>\n

His long career is near unmatched – only nine drivers have started more races – and his wins and podiums both put him in the top 40 drivers of all time, particularly impressive when factoring in that all were achieved without racing for the dominant team of the day.<\/p>\n

And his legacy is already stamped at home in Australia \u2013 where karting figures say he\u2019s inspired both an increase in grassroots participation and the next wave of Australian racing stars like Oscar Piastri and Jack Doohan.<\/p>\n

Statistically, Ricciardo will be the fourth most successful of Australia’s F1 stars, but many think he\u2019ll be remembered as the biggest.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don’t think anyone will have had an effect similar to him in terms of bringing the sport home to the audience,\u201d Lamonato says.<\/p>\n

“[He] did Australia proud,” Luciani concludes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n


\n
Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Facebook The F1 star grew up in a motorsport-loving family As always, the Australian Grand Prix in 2006 was an eclectic buffet of fame and power – with everyone from actress Amanda Bynes to the Dutch Prime Minister, a 70s pop star, and the original Blue Wiggle treading pit lane. Unnoticed in a corner, making […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5364,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5363","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-formula1"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5363","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5363"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5363\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5365,"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5363\/revisions\/5365"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5364"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5363"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5363"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5363"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}