Ricciardo: Formula 1 has a special aura, it has always fascinated me

Journalists from the official website of the championship continue a series of funny interviews with Formula 1 drivers, in which not many questions are related to motorsport, but the conversation is mainly about universal topics. This time the subject of the interview was Daniel Ricciardo…

Q: Can you somehow describe yourself in three words?
Daniel Ricciardo: Hmmm… Funny, adventurous… But I probably wouldn’t call someone who says he’s funny, though. Let’s put it this way: adventurous, relaxed and energetic. It’s true that ‘relaxed’ and ‘energetic’ contradict each other! (laughs)

Question: How did you come to fall in love with Formula 1?
Daniel Ricciardo: In short, for the fastest cars in the world. Even as a child I knew that these were the fastest cars, specially made for racing. Formula 1 has a special aura, it has always fascinated me and I wanted to test myself in it.

Question: When was the first time you drove a car in your life?
Daniel Ricciardo: Um… When I was little, I had a pedal-powered kart. I think I was about three years old at the time, and I remember putting on my father’s helmet, which was very big and heavy for me at the time. I went straight out into the street. That card said number 34, because that’s my dad’s number, and I ended up just removing the four, so I’m playing number three!

Question: Since when did you pass the driver’s license exam?
Daniel Ricciardo: The first time. I was nervous though! I was most concerned when I performed the “parallel parking” maneuver and was driving uphill. But I did well, it was an important achievement. Somehow I don’t want to do it again a second time.

Question: Who is your best friend in the paddock?
Daniel Ricciardo: I spend most of my time with my manager Blake, and it’s ironic that his last name is Friend. This is probably the most obvious answer.

We didn’t immediately become friends with Lando Norris during our first season together at McLaren, but then he came to us in Perth and visited my farm. He was traveling at the time and asked me, “Can I stay with you for a few days?”, and of course I invited him. It was interesting hanging out with him.

However, occasionally you can have fun with other racers off the track, although such an opportunity doesn’t arise often.

Question: Who is your best friend outside the paddock?
Daniel Ricciardo: It’s actually funny because I have two good friends in my life and they’re both named “Blake.” One of them works with me, but my best friend is probably the Blake I raced with in karting.

Question: And you call them Blake-1 and Blake-2?
Daniel Ricciardo: Ha! I call one ‘Tall Blake’ and the other ‘Manager Blake’. We have known “Tall Blake” since we were about 9 years old and have competed with each other in karting for quite some time. He still comes to my races, visited me when I lived in Italy, and has always remained a very good friend of mine.

I suppose he could easily say, “Well, you’ve accomplished everything, but I haven’t,” and such a relationship could be ruined by envy or jealousy, but in his case there was never such a thing. He is a true friend and is always honest with me.

Question: Which three people from the world of Formula 1 would you invite to dinner?
Daniel Ricciardo: James Hunt. I think someone like that is needed. Definitely, I wouldn’t invite the most serious racers. Lando is easy to make laugh. In general, I think I would choose funny people. Because laughing is very important.

Q: What about Yuki Tsunoda, your partner?
Daniel Ricciardo: Maybe…I’d say that last year at a general dinner where there were a lot of racers, Yuki made everyone laugh. Yuki is a good guy. And Valtteri Bottas deserves a place at this table with his hair. I think there’s something Australian about it.

Question: If you were organizing your dream team, which riders would you invite?
Daniel Ricciardo: I think Mario Andretti is one of those I have always admired, because he competed in the American Championships and in Formula 1, and was champion in both. In my opinion, he distinguished himself by a very versatile race preparation.

Then I would… maybe invite Ayrton Senna or Michael Schumacher. I think they are the obvious candidates. Let it be Schumacher – just because, in my opinion, everyone would call it Senna. Furthermore, Michael understood the technical side of things better than anyone. Who would I trust to lead the team? Eddie Jordan!

Question: Great follow-up to the next question, considering his passion for music. If you could put together a musical group from the racers, who would you invite, and what would this group be called?
Daniel Ricciardo: The Rejected! (a possible translation option is “Losers”) I can say with certainty that this group would be called exactly that, because none of us are very good musicians. Charles Leclerc would play piano, because I know he does. And Lando was pretty good on drums when we shot the video at McLaren a few years ago.

Yuki would be assigned as backing vocalist: I think his Japanese harmonies would come in very handy here. When do we fall short? Since Logan Sargent is American, I assume he must have some musical inclinations – let’s take Logan too. Let him play harmonica!

Question: What is your proudest achievement in Formula 1?
Daniel Ricciardo: Two points emerge. One of them is the first victory, because this is what you dream about. Until you win your first race, you’re not completely convinced you can do it. I also remember Melbourne, where in 2014, my first year at Red Bull, I almost won pole, started from the front row and finished second.

I agree, then I was deprived of this result (due to disqualification), but I think I performed well on my home track under pressure, which was even more so because I was competing in a new team. I was proud of the way I worked that weekend; it was as if a weight had been lifted from my shoulders.

Q: What advice would you give aspiring racers?
Daniel Ricciardo: This is the advice I give to everyone, even if it’s not about racing. It applies to any sport, because the most important thing is that this activity gives you pleasure. I think if you put all your love and soul into it – then there is a chance that it can become your profession.

Yes, you can make good money and get many more things that come with it, but initially you should like this business. It doesn’t have to be what your parents dream about – you have to feel inspired, for this you have to wake up every morning and enjoy exercising. And everything else will come.

Question: What would you like to be doing in five years?
Daniel Ricciardo: Oh… The ideal scenario is that I become world champion and spend more time on my farm. And this is the main scenario!