Ricciardo regrets leaving Red Bull for Renault
NXTbets Pro | Published On: October 29, 2026
Red Bull regret
Daniel Ricciardo says he regrets leaving Red Bull for Renault at the end of 2018 and believes the move may have cost him his best chance to fight for a Formula 1 world championship. He said he left because he felt himself becoming comfortable and wanted a new challenge after a decade in the team’s system, but the decision now stands out as a turning point he still thinks about. Ricciardo said he does not want to claim he would have beaten Max Verstappen if he had stayed, yet he remains curious about how his career might have unfolded. His final Formula 1 appearance came at the 2024 Singapore Grand Prix, after which Racing Bulls replaced him with Liam Lawson. He described the Red Bull exit as pivotal and said his view of it has changed over time. For Ricciardo, the move was tied to ambition and restlessness, and his career took a different path than the one he had imagined.
Career and achievements
Ricciardo’s Formula 1 career began with HRT in 2011 and ran through 257 starts, 8 wins and 32 podiums. Those numbers frame a career that delivered strong results. He said that after leaving Formula 1, he struggled with the change and hid from the pain and sadness of retirement for months. The sudden exit initially left him feeling “failure and humiliation.” He said retirement forced him to think about life outside the sport and to redefine his purpose. He said the months after leaving were difficult as he adjusted to a new reality. He also said he had wanted to walk away from Formula 1 at Monaco in 2022 and Silverstone in 2015, which gives more context to how long he has wrestled with the pull of the sport and the strain that comes with it. Even so, he said he now feels extremely proud of his Formula 1 career and sees his exit with more perspective than he once did.
Life after Formula 1
Ricciardo said he is at peace with his career, though he still does not like how it ended, and that balance defines where he stands now. Since leaving Formula 1, he has spent more time in Perth with family and friends, worked as a Ford Racing ambassador and developed his Enchanté brand. Ricciardo said he would only consider a comeback for the right reasons, not to chase a fairytale ending, and that view fits the calm he says he has found after a difficult stretch. He is looking at what the next chapter should be on his own terms. The way he tells it, the exit from Formula 1 hurt, the transition took time and the old questions about what might have been still linger. Ricciardo does not hide from the regret, but he also does not let it define everything that came before or after it.
