Ricciardo admits responsibility for McLaren failures

Daniel Riicardo admitted that two seasons at McLaren have eroded his confidence and strength.

The Australian’s contract with the Woking team expired at the end of 2023, but the parties agreed to terminate it early, and this season Daniel will serve as a reserve driver for Red Bull Racing, allowing him to spend more time with family and friends. and generally gives more freedom.

In the days of the Australian Grand Prix, he made his first appearance in the paddock and interacted with the press, including answering questions about the previous period of his career. At the same time, Daniel is ready to admit responsibility for the fact that not everything turned out as he and now his former team wanted.

“I will always take some of the responsibility,” Riccardo quotes Speedcafe. – For many years I sincerely believed that I was the best in the world, so no matter how the situation develops, I can overcome it. But obviously in McLaren it was difficult for me to do this.

I understood that I’m not an ideal racer, that I have weaknesses, so I always take some of the blame. But why it failed at McLaren remains a great mystery.

Since I now have the opportunity to look at everything from the outside a bit, looking back at the past two years I understand that if I started everything from the beginning I would do a lot of things differently. Or maybe I would have asked more questions or made more demands of the team.

But over time you learn, so I can’t say I remember this time with regret. That’s how it was, I’ve been through it. And now that I’m back at Red Bull, I felt that maybe my confidence wasn’t at the level it used to be.

I even got behind the wheel of the simulator with some trepidation, but gradually I felt more and more at ease and felt at home again. Let’s say that after the first day of work I felt that the previous sensations were completely restored.