Few Formula 1 drivers have made losing a race seat look as likable as Daniel Ricciardo. When the Australian left the grid after the 2024 Singapore Grand Prix, he had eight race wins, 32 podiums, and a reputation as one of the friendliest men in the paddock. This guide sorts the confirmed facts of his career — the salary, the stats, the shoey — from the rumors that still follow him.
Wins: 8 ·
Age (as of 2026): 36 ·
Salary (2020): $27 million ·
Current Status: Retired from F1, Global Ambassador
Quick snapshot
- 8 Grand Prix wins, 32 podiums, 1,329 points in 256 races (CNN (global news outlet))
- F1 debut in 2011, followed by 14 consecutive seasons (CNN (global news outlet))
- Exact net worth — estimates range from $50–80 million, with no public confirmation
- Whether the ambassador role becomes a route back to racing
- Final race: 2024 Singapore Grand Prix, where he finished 18th (Sporting News Australia (F1 news))
- Last win: 2021 Italian Grand Prix at Monza (PlanetF1 (F1 specialist))
- Red Bull reserve driver during the first half of 2023 (PlanetF1 (F1 specialist))
- No race seat on the 2025 or 2026 grids; global ambassador work instead (Sporting News Australia (F1 news))
- Replaced by Liam Lawson at RB for the final six races of 2024 (Sporting News Australia (F1 news))
Key facts at a glance
Seven facts, one pattern: the confirmed numbers are rock solid, while the money figures stay fuzzy.
| Attribute | Value | Attribution |
|---|---|---|
| Age (as of 2026) | 36 | Wikipedia (biographical reference) |
| Nationality | Australian | Wikipedia (biographical reference) |
| Wins | 8 | CNN (global news outlet) |
| Teams | Red Bull, Renault, McLaren, AlphaTauri | Square Mile (career interview) |
| Salary (2020) | $27 million | Wikipedia (earnings reference) |
| Net worth | Estimated $50-80 million (unconfirmed) | No public confirmation |
| Current role | F1 Global Ambassador (as of 2026) | Sporting News Australia (F1 news) |
The figures trace back to CNN’s September 2024 profile, Wikipedia’s Ricciardo biography, Square Mile’s career interview, and Sporting News Australia’s update on his life after racing — with one exception. Net worth is the only row without a verifiable source, because none exists.
Is Daniel Ricciardo still doing F1?
Short answer: no — not in a race seat. Ricciardo’s last Grand Prix was the 2024 Singapore Grand Prix, where he finished 18th, and Liam Lawson took the RB seat for the final six races of the season (Sporting News Australia (F1 news)).
Who is Daniel Ricciardo with now?
- No team signed him for the 2025 or 2026 grids
- He carries a global ambassador role, keeping him inside F1 without a race program
- Any return would be a new chapter, not a continuation — no contract exists
Ricciardo’s likability did not protect his seat. When the results dropped, RB moved on — and the paddock’s favorite driver was out of a drive. The sport’s arithmetic is cold: personality fills the stands, but numbers fill the grid.
Does Max Verstappen still talk to Daniel Ricciardo?
- They were Red Bull teammates from 2014 to 2018
- Ricciardo returned to Red Bull as a reserve driver in early 2023 (PlanetF1 (F1 specialist))
- The return would not have happened if the relationship had curdled
It is the kind of question that only exists because the friendship is real. Ricciardo and Verstappen raced each other hard for years, and Ricciardo still chose to come back to the Red Bull family when his McLaren deal ended. That move said more than any interview: the bond survived the professional split.
Has Daniel Ricciardo won a F1 Championship?
- No — Ricciardo never won a Formula 1 World Championship
- His final career totals, per CNN: 8 wins, 32 podiums, 1,329 points in 256 races (CNN, global news outlet)
- Final race: Singapore, , where he finished 18th (Sporting News Australia, F1 news)
The math is what it is: a very good career with a missing final chapter. Ricciardo won on the sport’s biggest stages — including Monza in 2021 — but the championship never came within reach in the final rounds.
The pattern: Ricciardo’s career was built on spectacular days rather than sustained title runs — which is exactly why his exit felt sudden even though it was months in the making.
What is Daniel Ricciardo’s salary?
The most-cited number in Ricciardo’s financial file is $27 million for the 2020 season — a figure that ranked 48th on Forbes’ list of the world’s highest-paid athletes that year (Wikipedia (earnings reference)).
What is Daniel Ricciardo’s net worth?
- 2020 salary: $27 million (Wikipedia, earnings reference)
- Forbes ranking, 2020: 48th among the world’s highest-paid athletes (Wikipedia, earnings reference)
- Net worth estimates: $50–80 million, with no public confirmation
Treat any net-worth figure as a guess dressed up as a number. Ricciardo has never published verified accounts, and the $27 million salary is from 2020 — his peak earning year, not his current income.
The gap between salary and net worth is normal in F1. A driver’s listed pay is the top line; endorsements and appearances fill the rest. Ricciardo’s public image has long made him one of the sport’s most commercial figures — the grin sells even when the car doesn’t.
The implication: the reliable numbers stop at 2020. Everything after that — including the 2023–2024 return to the Red Bull fold — is a private contract.
Who is considered the nicest F1 driver?
If F1 media has a consensus answer, it’s Daniel Ricciardo. CNN’s 2024 profile describes him as one of the sport’s most likeable figures, and a 2016 New York Times profile went further — calling him “exceptionally cheerful” (via Wikipedia, biographical reference).
The sport’s nicest driver was also one of its most dangerous overtakers — the smile and the late brake lived in the same man, and the combination became his signature.
Who is the most loved F1 driver?
- The nickname “Honey Badger” captures the duality: a warm public face over a fearless racing style (CNN, global news outlet)
- The shoey — drinking champagne from a race boot — became his signature celebration
- Lando Norris and Sebastian Vettel are the names most often raised alongside Ricciardo in “nicest driver” debates
The most loved list is subjective, but the pattern is consistent: the drivers fans warm to most combine race-winning talent with an off-track persona that feels genuine. Ricciardo’s version of that — the Honey Badger who smiled through losing streaks as well as wins — is why the affection outlasted the results.
Why this matters: likability was a professional asset, not a personality bonus. It kept him in commercials, kept him in interviews, and kept fans loyal through the quiet McLaren years — a commercial durability few drivers can match.
Who is the most disliked driver in F1?
F1 does not publish a popularity ranking, so “most disliked” is a fan debate rather than a record. The names that come up most often are the same ones: Nelson Piquet, Nikita Mazepin, and Pastor Maldonado.
Who is the least likeable F1 driver?
- Nelson Piquet: repeatedly named by fans for controversial comments outside racing
- Other names shift with each generation — no driver has held the title permanently
Piquet’s driving record is not what draws the criticism. The dislike is about behavior off the track, which is also why the label has never stuck to a single active driver for long.
Who is the dumbest F1 driver?
- No credible F1 source ranks drivers by intelligence
- The question usually follows an on-track mistake, not a pattern of behavior
The honest answer: the question says more about fan frustration than about any driver. A clumsy race gets a driver tagged for years, while the same fans forgive a champion’s bad weekend within minutes.
Who was a poor F1 driver?
- Nikita Mazepin: the most common answer in “weakest on the grid” debates
- Pastor Maldonado: a genuine race winner whose mistakes feature heavily in the same conversations
“Poor” is a harsh word for drivers who were usually given uncompetitive cars. Talent exists in every F1 seat; the car decides how often it shows.
The catch: F1 fans are quick to name a villain and quick to forgive one. Ricciardo is the proof from the other side — being universally liked never once protected him from losing a seat.
Which F1 drivers dislike each other?
Real F1 feuds are rarer than the media suggests. The sport’s most famous antagonisms — Ayrton Senna vs. Alain Prost, Lewis Hamilton vs. Nico Rosberg — are the exceptions that prove the rule: most drivers are too busy racing each other to hate each other.
What are the most famous F1 rivalries?
- Senna vs. Prost: a rivalry that split a decade and an entire paddock
- Hamilton vs. Rosberg: teammates whose friendship did not survive two title fights
- Hamilton vs. Verstappen: tense wheel-to-wheel moments in 2021 that still color their relationship
- Ricciardo vs. Verstappen: the friendly rivalry that never curdled (PlanetF1, F1 specialist)
The Ricciardo–Verstappen pairing is the rare case where the rivalry and the friendship coexisted. They fought each other for wins at Red Bull, and Ricciardo later returned to the team as a reserve driver — a decision that would be unthinkable if the old battles had turned personal (PlanetF1, F1 specialist).
The pattern: the strongest rivalries in Ricciardo’s story were born from equal cars, not equal egos. When the cars became unequal, the rivalry simply faded.
F1 driver likability compared
Three drivers, one pattern: the paddock’s most liked figures pair serious talent with a public persona that doesn’t take itself too seriously.
| Driver | Known for | What sources say |
|---|---|---|
| Daniel Ricciardo | The Honey Badger: friendly smile, late-braking overtakes | “Exceptionally cheerful” — New York Times via Wikipedia; one of F1’s most likeable figures — CNN (global news outlet) |
| Lando Norris | Playful humor, online presence, McLaren resurgence | Shared McLaren’s one-two finish with Ricciardo at the 2021 Italian Grand Prix (PlanetF1, F1 specialist) |
| Sebastian Vettel | Veteran sportsmanship, outspoken beyond racing | Ricciardo’s Red Bull teammate in 2014; regularly appears beside Ricciardo in fan-favorite discussions (Wikipedia, biographical reference) |
What this means: likability in F1 has nothing to do with softness. Ricciardo, Norris, and Vettel all race hard and remain popular anyway — that combination is rarer than any single win.
Career timeline: from HRT debut to global ambassador
Eight stops, one through-line: every move was a bet that a change of scenery would bring back the joy — and the wins.
- 2011 — F1 debut with HRT (CNN, global news outlet)
- 2014 — Joins Red Bull Racing (Wikipedia, biographical reference)
- 2018 — Wins the Monaco Grand Prix, one of his eight career victories
- 2019 — Leaves Red Bull for Renault (Square Mile, career interview)
- 2021 — Wins the Italian Grand Prix at Monza with McLaren
- 2023 — Returns to Red Bull as reserve driver; back on the grid with AlphaTauri from the Hungarian Grand Prix (PlanetF1, F1 specialist)
- 2024 — Final race: Singapore, ; replaced by Liam Lawson at RB (Sporting News Australia, F1 news)
- 2026 — Named F1 Global Ambassador
The pattern: Ricciardo changed teams at the peak of his value, twice trading stability for a fresh start. It made for compelling storytelling and uneven results — a career that always prioritized joy over calculation.
Confirmed vs. unclear
Confirmed
- Born , in Perth, Australia (Wikipedia, biographical reference)
- 8 wins, 32 podiums, 1,329 points in 256 races (CNN, global news outlet)
- Final race: Singapore Grand Prix, (Sporting News Australia, F1 news)
- 2020 salary: $27 million; ranked 48th on Forbes’ highest-paid athletes list (Wikipedia, earnings reference)
Still unclear
- Exact net worth — the $50–80 million range is an estimate, not a disclosure
- Whether the 2026 ambassador role leads back to a race seat
- Any lingering tension from the 2018 Red Bull exit — his 2023 return suggests the split stayed amicable (PlanetF1, F1 specialist)
- Who actually belongs on the “most disliked” list — that debate is opinion, not record
The trade-off: fans want a clean story, but careers are messy. The confirmed facts are strong enough to build a legacy on; the unclear parts are why the gossip keeps selling.
In his own words
I’ve loved this sport my whole life.
Daniel Ricciardo, farewell message after the 2024 Singapore Grand Prix (Sporting News Australia, F1 news)
Exceptionally cheerful — and seemingly among the nicest drivers in Formula 1.
The New York Times, 2016 profile, as summarized in Ricciardo’s Wikipedia biography (Wikipedia, biographical reference)
An amicable personality, combined with aggressive racing and late-braking overtakes.
CNN, 2024 F1 profile (CNN, global news outlet)
What to watch: Ricciardo’s own words were always grateful, never bitter. That thread runs through every stage of his career — and it is why his farewell felt different from most F1 exits.
The big picture
Ricciardo’s fall from a race seat was long and public, but his popularity never followed the results curve. He left with numbers most drivers would frame — eight wins, 32 podiums — and a reputation no active driver has matched. For Formula 1’s sponsors and teams, evaluating the sport’s next marketable face, the implication is clear: back the driver who makes the sport feel human, or keep watching engagement walk out the door with him.
Related reading
- Daniel Ricciardo profile — CNN (global news outlet)
- Daniel Ricciardo F1 return — PlanetF1 (F1 specialist)
- What Daniel Ricciardo is doing now — Sporting News Australia (F1 news)
- Daniel Ricciardo interview — Square Mile (career interview)
Related reading: Daniel Ricciardo profile – CNN · Daniel Ricciardo F1 return – PlanetF1
Frequently asked questions
How tall is Daniel Ricciardo?
Around 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m), according to biographical data on Wikipedia (Wikipedia (biographical reference)).
Is Daniel Ricciardo married?
No. Ricciardo is not married and has kept his personal life largely out of the paddock conversation.
What is Daniel Ricciardo’s nickname?
The Honey Badger — a name that reflects the contrast between his warm public face and his fearless racing style (CNN, global news outlet).
Did Daniel Ricciardo ever drive for Ferrari?
No. His Formula 1 teams were HRT, Red Bull, Renault, McLaren, and AlphaTauri/RB (Square Mile, career interview). He did win the 2021 Italian Grand Prix at Monza while driving for McLaren (PlanetF1, F1 specialist).
What is a ‘shoey’?
A celebratory ritual in which a driver drinks champagne from a racing boot. Ricciardo made it famous after podiums and race wins, and it became part of his fan appeal.
What team did Daniel Ricciardo race for in 2023?
AlphaTauri (now RB). He started 2023 as Red Bull’s reserve driver and returned to a race seat at the 2023 Hungarian Grand Prix (PlanetF1, F1 specialist).
The takeaway: most questions about Ricciardo lead to the same gap — the driver everyone loved has no obvious successor, in the seat or in the fans’ affection.
Oliver Jack Carter Cooper is a staff writer for EveningLedger.uk, covering UK news, politics, business and culture. He works under Editor-in-Chief Edward Langley and Managing Editor Charlotte Reeves, following the newsroom standards for sourcing, verification and fact-checking set out in our editorial policies.