2024 Formula 1 driver rankings #18: Ricciardo · RaceFans

The 2024 season was likely to end one of two ways for Daniel Ricciardo: A recall back to the race-winning team he walked out of six years earlier, or the end of his Formula 1 racing career. Regrettably for the enormously popular 35-year-old, it turned out to be the latter.

The opening rounds set the pattern for Ricciardo’s truncated season. Having been allowed past an irate Yuki Tsunoda in Bahrain he was too far off his team mate’s pace at the next round in Jeddah. Ricciardo’s home race underlined his plight as he was eliminated in Q1, then his Japanese Grand Prix ended when he tangled with Alexander Albon on the first lap.

There were a few moments when Ricciardo could hold his head high. His performance in the Miami Grand Prix sprint race looked like the Ricciardo of old as he started and finished fourth, beaten only by the Red Bulls and a Ferrari. He showed a fine touch in the tricky conditions in Canada, taking eighth place despite a penalty for a jump start caused by a creeping clutch.

But these were the exceptions to an otherwise consistently underwhelming season. Ricciardo’s qualifying performances were consistently sub-par and he exacerbated his low grid positions by tending to lose places at the start. Indeed, by the time Red Bull finally gave up on coaxing Ricciardo back to his past best, he was statistically the worst starter on the grid.

Occasionally he was able to improve his positions during races, but far more often he had given himself too much to do by lap two and points were a rarity. Yes, RB lost its way with car development, but they were hardly the only team to bring a duff upgrade during 2024, and a driver of Ricciardo’s experience (he passed 250 grands prix last year) should have been better placed than most to cope with the setbacks.

By the second half of the season the writing was on the wall for Ricciardo. He went out in Q1 in his last two appearances. In a final irony, his last act as an F1 driver was to take the fastest lap away from Max Verstappen’s championship rival; so despite never returning to Red Bull he at least performed one useful last piece of service for them.

RaceFans’ driver rankings are based partly on the scores awarded to drivers for their performances in each round as well as other factors.

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