It was a Singapore Grand Prix that won’t go down in the annals of history as a classic, but more so as the (likely) last ever race of one of the biggest F1 fan favourites we’ve ever seen.
But is it justified to see the back of Danny Ric instead of another driver in the Red Bull garage?
Red Bull once again get their driver choices all wrong
For such an iconic brand that prides itself on a young driver program that establishes the biggest talents in F1, how does Red Bull always get its driver choices so wrong?
The early days featuring the likes of Vitantonio Liuzzi and Christian Klien. The late 2010s debacle around Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon. All the revolving doors featuring Toro Rosso/AlphaTauri. The team has history when it comes to questionable driver decisions.
So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that once again the team is in the midst of a similar scenario, as it looks to vault up Liam Lawson into a seat it supposedly guaranteed him.
But why is Daniel Ricciardo getting the flick when a certain other driver in the senior team is surely the one who deserves to go?
No, Ricciardo hasn’t set the world alight in 2024. But neither has Sergio Perez. In fact it would be a pretty solid argument to say that Perez has more underperformed than Ricciardo across the season.
Perez is in a race-winning car. Ricciardo is not. Perez is needed to help defend two World Championships. Ricciardo is not. Perez has had more chances to deliver when needed. Ricciardo has not. So why is Danny Ric the one to get the flick?
If the goal for Red Bull is to analyse Lawson for a possibly Red Bull seat in 2025, why not shove him right into the senior team now to see if he is up to scratch? The team already saw what he is capable of in the junior team when he filled in for Ricciardo last season, and clearly rate him highly enough if they’re willing to make such a hullaballoo over keeping him based on some clause that says he will get a seat by a certain date. So it makes perfect sense to give him the senior seat immediately.
(Photo by Getty Images)
Perez has been on thin ice all year, and Singapore aside, has been woeful for the last ten or so races. The fact he retained his seat after the summer break was a huge shock, and the fact that now all the pressure has shifted to Ricciardo, who has been solid in the same period, is baffling.
If Red Bull are serious about Lawson’s prospects and want to make him the poster child to help Max Verstappen moving forward, then Perez is the one that should be having an emotional sendoff, not Ricciardo.
The one sliding doors moment that will forever haunt Danny Ric
In 2018, Daniel Ricciardo made the fateful decision to leave Red Bull and go to Renault.
On paper, it wasn’t as dumb as many people seemed to think it was. Red Bull were clearly team Max Verstappen, and Ricciardo wanted to find his own identity on the F1 grid. What better way to do that than with a works outfit with a history of success in the sport.
As we all know, it didn’t play out the way he had hoped. A couple of solid years with the French outfit soon made way for a couple of bad years with McLaren and then the rest is history.
So the question will always remain: what if he stayed with Red Bull?
Well it’s hard to see that things wouldn’t have changed that much from his position in 2018. You’d expect solid results, race wins and some solid challenges against Verstappen.
You’d also argue he would’ve been very much in contention for championships, particularly over the last few years.
Of course it’s easy to say this in hindsight, but circumstances and changes of scenery definitely added to Danny Ric’s form slump, as did the support (or in the case of McLaren, lack of) along the way.
(Photo by Getty Images)
Ricciardo was always appreciated at Red Bull. Yes, Verstappen had the rub of the green more so towards the end of his tenure at the team, but had Ricciardo stayed, it’s hard to imagine that he would’ve had a similar slump or change in support that he did in changing teams multiple times since.
We will never know of course fully if this would’ve been the case, but it is one sliding doors moment that Danny Ric fans will always talk about.
The Championship is Norris’ to lose
The Championship as it stands is fascinating.
Max Verstappen continues to lead by a couple of wins, with Lando Norris doing everything he can to bridge the gap with every race that comes along.
In Singapore, Norris absolutely dominated. A 20-second win over Verstappen would’ve been unheard of only a few months ago, yet now it’s almost expected given the level of performance we’re seeing from both Norris and McLaren right now.
Which means one thing: Norris has the championship in his grasp and can only lose it from here.
Sure, he has a massive gap to bring in, but what has given the impression recently that he won’t be able to do that? Even on the weekends when he isn’t winning, he is still finishing significantly higher than Verstappen, doing everything he can to bring the points down.
Then there is the fact that Red Bull have fallen so far off a cliff that it’s literally Verstappen carrying the fortunes of that team right now to score any points. But even with the amount of talent Verstappen has underneath him, there’s only so much he can do.
There are plenty of races left for Norris to bring the points down, and with the addition of sprint races along the way, more points available than many people realise.
Norris just needs to continue to drive and mature in the fashion he has recently to fully keep his grasp on that title, and bring home the championship for the very first time.
Colapinto might be the find of the season
A month ago many people hadn’t even heard of him. Now he just might be the best find of the season. Franco Colapinto take a bow.
The Argentinian was a surprise choice to replace Logan Sargeant at Williams after the Dutch Grand Prix but has shown that surprise has paid off in spades for the team.
A great performance in Italy was followed by points in Azerbaijan and then another amazing performance in Singapore followed where he finished in 11th, spending most of the race challenging Sergio Perez for that final point of the race. Let’s just say that again: Sergio Perez in a car that only a few months ago was the fastest in the sport. Amazing.
Colapinto’s performances have rightfully put him in the conversation for the vacant seat at Kick Sauber/Audi next year as it really does seem a shame to think that a find like this can come along and potentially not be in the mix for a permanent seat.
One thing too is guaranteed: come the Brazilian Grand Prix, expect a large Argentinian contigent to be on show to help support their new superstar.
He deserves all the praise and love he can get after everything he has achieved so far.
The FIA crackdown on swearing is a ******* joke
Finally, just what the **** is the FIA thinking when it comes to their crackdown on swearing?
Max Verstappen let a naughty word slip in one of the official press conferences and before you knew it, he was facing a fine and community service and the wrath of the entire organisation.
(Photo by Getty Images)
What world do we live in for this to be a thing? The same world in which a Netflix show based on the sport glorifies swearing more so than coherent storytelling. The same world in which a former team principal was lauded for his potty mouth. The same world in which there are more beeps heard on team radio than relevant information. It really is a farce for this to be a thing.
Verstappen was right to fully embrace the lunacy of it all with him refusing to answer questions properly after the race on Sunday in the press conference and fully dropping his annoyance at the situation in every subsequent interview.
Given the hypocritical nature of the fine and decision by the FIA given everything it does to promote the sport to a younger generation, it really does remain to be seen if sense will come from all of this soon and we can get back to normality.
This article was originally written for The Roar. You can read the published version here
Kommentare