After a whirlwind F1 career filled with podium champagne, daring overtakes, and infectious laughter, Daniel Ricciardo has settled into a very different rhythm of life – one that includes fewer race debriefs and a lot more nostalgia.
The eight-time Grand Prix winner, who departed the F1 grid following his final race in Singapore in 2024, has now resurfaced at a much smaller, but no less important, track.
Ricciardo was back in the paddock over the weekend, but this time at Buckmore Park for a round of the Daniel Ricciardo Series – a karting championship bearing his name.
As kids zipped around the circuit in 2-stroke DRS Ricciardo Karts, the Aussie stood trackside, reflecting on his new chapter.
“All good!” Ricciardo said, quoted by Formula1.com, when asked how life post-F1 was treating him,
“I’m just enjoying some life in the slow lane. I mean, it sounds weird saying like retirement when I’m 35 years old, but retirement from at least the world I was living in. It’s cool.”
Back to Where It All Began
Though he hasn’t raced since his final F1 appearance, Ricciardo’s passion for motorsport clearly hasn’t faded. If anything, he’s returned to where his journey began – among kids, karts, and chaos (of the fun kind).
“To be at the kart track… it’s my first time at a race track since I guess Singapore, so quite a few months now,” Ricciardo shared. “But it’s cool to see the kids… this is why I started karting…”
With the unmistakable buzz of childhood excitement surrounding him, Ricciardo couldn’t help but get a little sentimental.
“I’ve had photos with groups of the kids and I can tell the friendships they have, and these friendships will last a lifetime a lot of them,” he added.
“My best friend to this day was a friend that I raced karts with. It’s nice to be back at like the grassroots of it and the most pure form of racing.”
For someone who once dueled with the likes of Hamilton and Verstappen, Ricciardo seemed totally content standing among mini racers, oversized helmets, and hopeful dreams.
“We all have idols and heroes…”
Now a seasoned veteran – and possibly one of the coolest ex-F1 drivers to walk into a kart paddock – Ricciardo has become a source of inspiration for the young guns.
“I think now that I’m a bit removed from it and life is not as chaotic, it’s nice to remember what it was like to be at the start of the career,” he said. “We all have idols and heroes…”
“I would be very nervous meeting someone who I admired, so I understand sometimes it’s a bit overwhelming. But everyone seems pretty cool. I guess maybe I’m not the only driver they’ve met before – there’s a lot of F1 fans here!”
Still, the idea of being a role model isn’t lost on him.
“I think just to have someone that you want to try and obviously look up to and someone that can inspire you… if I’m able to sprinkle a tiny bit of inspiration or motivation today by being here and having a chat to a few kids, that’s awesome.
“That’s something I know I appreciated when I was eight, nine, 10 years old.”
Racing Advice? Have Fun. Seriously.
When asked what advice he’d give to his younger self – or to the next generation of helmeted hopefuls – Ricciardo kept it refreshingly simple.
“I mean, I think I was quite lucky with the advice,” he admitted. “It was always just, ‘Go and have fun’. It wasn’t about trying to impress someone or be someone you’re not. ‘If you do this you’ll be on TV and make money’. It wasn’t about that, it was just, ‘Go and have fun’.”
That mantra, it seems, shaped more than just his driving style, it gave him a sense of self beyond the circuit.
“It kind of helped me also… like racing is scary, you know? I think it helped me at school have a bit more confidence,” he said. “
“Everyone’s shy, we all go through things growing up, so I think it kind of gave me confidence in myself as a person, also away from the track. So, that’s something I took from it.”
And in true Ricciardo fashion, he wrapped it all up with a smile and a story
Read also: Lawson sought Ricciardo’s advice ahead of Canadian GP“But as far as the driving goes, honestly it was just about me having fun. I was playing with my friends [at the track], we were riding scooters and stuff, and my dad was always dragging me like, ‘The kart’s on the grid, put your helmet on!’
“The karting was kind of secondary a lot of the time. It was just to be in this environment with friends.”
From scooter races at kart tracks to Grand Prix wins, Daniel Ricciardo seems to have found peace – and maybe even more joy – in stepping off the throttle.
Turns out, life in the slow lane suits him just fine.
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