"It's not like I'm taking it for granted": Daniel Ricciardo on the attention his performances get from the media

Daniel Ricciardo stated that he has not taken his second stint in the sport for granted, in terms of working towards definitive performance goals. Speaking exclusively to Sportskeeda in Monaco, the eight-time Grand Prix winner blamed the excessive media attention on his performances on his tumultuous journey in the sport in the last two years.

After getting sacked by McLaren in 2022, Daniel Ricciardo returned to Hungary in 2023 to replace an underwhelming Nyck De Vries at AlphaTauri. Whether it was his return or the freak hand injury in Zandvoort that interrupted his season, he remained in the spotlight as much as the top teams and their drivers.

Once a formidable force on the grid, the 34-year-old out-qualified Yuki Tsunoda in three out of six races he drove and two out of three sprint races. Nevertheless his drive in Mexico after the injury was hailed as the highlight of his return.

As the 2024 season commenced, his underwhelming start drew similar media attention. But by the third race in Australia, his ability to deliver like he did in his prime was being questioned. Despite many drivers being beaten or outperformed by their teammates at that stage, Daniel Ricciardo was under pressure to deliver along with a silly season at play, given that he is out of contract by the end of the year.

Despite the media discourse on his performances, the Australian is adamant he will work towards turning it around. Stating that the second chance in the sport was serious business for him, the Perth-born driver

Asked for his opinion on the media discourse surrounding his performances in the first four races of the calendar, Daniel Ricciardo said:

“I think you know for whatever reasons, the reality is that I am a driver that causes attention I guess, in terms of my personality or getting sacked from McLaren and then being out for a season and then Red Bull bringing me back. I guess there’s a lot of things that have happened with me in the last two years. So just naturally, I have been someone that people have been talking about whether its good or bad so yeah I don’t know. I’m also at a point in my career where I just know what I need to do.”

He added:

“I really only hear things in the media because we have media briefings. And they are telling me ‘Ok this is the story this week and blah blah’ and I am not looking online can reading everything that is written about me. As I said before, If I am not doing good enough and I know that. Thats why I am working hard and I am not partying and I am not taking this second chance as a joke, its not like I am taking it for granted. I am really working hard to make this work. And I’ll keep doing that until it does.”

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Daniel Ricciardo believes the ‘shoey’ confidence will return in Monaco

Daniel Ricciardo hopes the Monaco GP weekend returns him to his old ways of drinking champagne from his shoe on the podium. Termed a ‘shoey’, he introduced the tradition in Formula 1 by drinking the bubbly from his footwear and making his podium sharers and TV pundits sip from his shoe.

In the old days, the Perth-born driver would name a ‘shoey’ target and achieve the goal. Some of the drivers who fell prey to the unique tradition were Max Verstappen, Nico Rosberg, Lewis Hamilton, and Lando Norris to name a few.

Reminded by Sportskeeda about his confidence in achieving his ‘shoey’ targets, Daniel Ricciardo reflected upon his past with hope. While he admitted feeling most confident in Miami, he believes that Monaco is one of those races where a ‘shoey’ could be a possibility.

But the Aussie would have to be on the podium to carry out the tradition. Having not driven in Monaco last year and having been successful around this circuit in the past, he believes this weekend brings back the excitement to want to drink the bubbly again from his shoe.

Asked by Sportskeeda if he could return back to his old ‘shoey’ ways or a similar level of confidence, an elated Daniel Ricciardo said:

“Yeah its funny, like I felt the most confident I have in Miami starting at the front. In Monza being on the front row with Max, like in terms of I feel like when most of the eyes are on me or the most of the pressure is on, thats when I feel most happy and most comfortable. Yeah I just want to be, get myself back in the front and this weekend is a great time to do it again. Having last year off and missing this race, It gives me a lot more confidence and excitement being back. So hopefully there is some champagne drunken out of shoes this week.”

Asked again if he meant to drink champagne from his shoe in Monaco indirectly targeting a podium, Daniel Ricciardo said:

“Yes this week..That’ll be really nice.”

Daniel Ricciardo last drank champagne from his shoe in Monza in 2021, where he claimed victory to turn around an underwhelming maiden season at McLaren. If one had to summarise his past record, the Faenza team and HRT are the only teams where the Aussie hasn’t carried out his famous tradition. Determined to prove naysayers wrong and wade off the unwanted scrutiny, the RB driver is adamant about proving a point in Monaco.

To perform a ‘shoey’ and belly dive into the swimming pool or the marina, a podium will have to be the minimum result. His iconic belly dive into the swimming pool was after his victory at the 2018 Monaco GP, one of the defining moments of his Red Bull career.

The only podium sitters or race winners with the Faenza-based team have been Pierre Gasly, Daniil Kyvat and Sebastian Vettel. All three drivers have been beaten or outclassed by Daniel Ricciardo at some point in his career. Therefore, the 'shoey' is an achievable goal, given his determination and ability to qualify on the front row with his current team.