This past week Visa Cash App RB F1 Team made it official, announcing that Daniel Ricciardo would be out, and Liam Lawson would be sliding into his seat, for the rest of the season. That means starting with the United States Grand Prix next month it will be Lawson alongside Yuki Tsunoda, as VCARB looks to hold off Haas in a fight for sixth in the Formula 1 Constructors’ Championship.
That decision — and in particular how it was handled by VCARB and Red Bull — has sparked furious debate on social media and elsewhere. While Ricciardo’s performance perhaps merited this move, many believe that Ricciardo, given everything he has accomplished in F1 and everything he has meant to the sport, deserved a proper sendoff, perhaps in Austin at a race he loved.
However, the move has sparked something else as well: A tremendous outpouring of support from around the sporting world.
Esteban Ocon, who was a teammate of Ricciardo’s at Renault, praised him in an Instagram post, calling the Australian driver a “top guy and a great competitor:”
Zak Brown, the McLaren CEO who was Ricciardo’s boss during his time with McLaren, hailed Ricciardo as an “awesome person to be around,” and noted that he has a tattoo because of Ricciardo’s last F1 victory:
His teammate at VCARB, Yuki Tsunoda, praised Ricciardo and his F1 legacy:
Christian Horner, the Red Bull Team Principal, posted a lengthy Instagram message, hailing Ricciardo. “From 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 on the Team here in Milton Keynes and F1 as a whole.
“Thank you for the wins, smiles, songs (and I wish I could say the shoeys), you will always be a special part of the Red Bull Family.”
Pierre Gasly’s message on Instagram honored the “[o]ne of a kind” driver, and included a photo of Ricciardo arriving on horseback for a United States Grand Prix, an iconic image from a career filled with such moments:
One of the most heartfelt messages came from Lewis Hamilton, who posted a message on Instagram complete with a picture of the two sharing a podium shoey:
And the praise for Ricciardo was not limited to the F1 grid. Ricciardo’s friendship with Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen is the stuff of legend, and formed the basis of this post from the NFL Australian account on Instagram:
Finally there was this. On Friday night the NHL’s Vegas Golden Knights were in action against the Utah Hockey Club in pre-season action. In the first intermission, the team’s social media account shared this message:
still can’t picture F1 without Danny Ric tbh
— Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) September 28, 2024
ot many can, at least right now.
