Formula One: Daniel Ricciardo - the great Australian hope?

Daniel Ricciardo – or Honey Badger, as he is fondly known in the pit lane – is currently the only Australian driver competing in Formula One. The West Australian has moved around in terms of teams to get a shot at winning the World Championship he craves, and he certainly has the talent to do it.

Daniel Ricciardo is a popular and talented driver who has been a mainstay of the Formula 1 grid for over a decade. While he finds himself without a seat for the upcoming season, there are still several options available to him. Whether he chooses to remain in Formula 1 or explore other opportunities, fans around the world will be eagerly watching to see what the future holds for this beloved driver. But how did he get to where he is now, and can he one day become world champion?

Daniel Ricciardo: route to Formula One

Daniel Ricciardo’s route to Formula One was a little different from the average driver on the grid. Unlike many drivers within the sport, Ricciardo started his career well away from Europe’s big teams and the bright lights of Formula 1.

From Australian Karting to Europe

Ricciardo began racing Karts at the age of 9, learning his trade the hard way, travelling around Australia trying to pick up points in an often less competitive machine – a story that seems to run through his career.

His first big move was into the Australian Formula Ford Championship in 2005 when he was only 15 years old. Driving an old and much slower Van Diemen, Ricciardo managed to finish the season in 8th place.

Realising that he needed to get to Europe in order to get a shot at the dream of F1, Ricciardo had spells in Formula 3 in the second half of 2008 and the British Formula 3 Championship in 2009 with Carlin Motorsport. He then entered the Formula Renault 3.5 Series in 2009, taking 8 pole positions in total in a landmark season.

Ricciardo secured the Championship that year, and won the British Formula 3 Championship the year after. Ricciardo finished his last season before heading to the top class just two points off the eventual champion, but by this time he had finally arrived was attracting the attention of some of the biggest names in the business.

Torro Rosso, Red Bull and first Grand Prix win

In 2009 during a Red Bull Racing young drivers test, Ricciardo was on the track in Jerez with a group of other young hopefuls trying to get the attention of F1 team manager, Christian Horner.

On the day he managed to clock the quickest time, a full second quicker than anyone else on the track. Horner snapped him up as the Red Bull team test and reserve driver, before giving him a proper Formula One race seat at Red Bull’s second team, Torro Rosso, for the 2012 season. But not before he would replace Narain Karthikeyan for the remainder of the 2011 season with Red Bull Racing sister team, Hispania Racing. Ricciardo began his journey by making his debut at the British Grand Prix at Silverstone.

In the first event of the year, Ricciardo managed his first points with Torro Rosso at his home race at the Australian Grand Prix in 2012, overtaking team mate Jean-Eric Vergne in the final laps to finish in ninth place.

Ricciardo continued cut his teeth and impress at Torro Rosso, constantly outperforming his teammates and F1 qualifying high up the grid.

This led to Horner offering the Australian a race seat with one of the big teams, replacing another Aussie, Mark Webber. Ricciardo signed a deal to partner with the then-4 times World Champion Sebastian Vettel for 2014.

A dream start with Red Bull Racing

Incredibly, Daniel Ricciardo managed his first podium for Red Bull Racing after a handful of races in Barcelona, finishing third. Proving it was no fluke, Ricciardo finished on the podium again after his first pole position at the Monaco Grand Prix, before taking his maiden win in Canada. His impressive first season finished with 8 podiums in total, and 3 victories.

It could have been even better when Ricciardo began the season in Australia. Ricciardo qualified behind pole position holder Lewis Hamilton and finished second in the first race – only to be disqualified due to fuel limits.

In his first year with Red Bull, Ricciardo finished third in the championship behind only championship leader, Lewis Hamilton, and Nico Rosberg. Meaning in his first season, he managed to finish ahead of teammate Sebastian Vettel.

The following season the Red Bull driver was competing lower down the field, in large part because Red Bull had an uncompetitive car, falling some way behind the Ferrari and Mercedes cars in 2015. Ricciardo finished the year in eighth place in the championship that year.

In 2016 the team bounced back, when Ricciardo returned to form alongside new team mate, Max Verstappen, taking a victory each as well as a bag full of podiums. During the final race of the season, Ricciardo finished on the podium to secure third place in the Championship.

2017 and 2018 were easily the two most difficult years for Daniel Ricciardo at Red Bull. The car struggled for pace and his young teammate started to out-qualify him on a regular basis and even finished ahead of him in the 2018 championship. This forced Daniel Ricciardo into a rethink, and he signed a contract with Red Bull’s fierce rivals, Renault.

Renault to McLaren

Daniel Ricciardo started his two-year contract with Renault Formula One team for the 2019 season. It seemed like a marriage made in heaven at first, with Renault’s ambitions to win the constructors’ championship, as well as the drivers championship, meant Ricciardo might claim his first victory in the championship.

But things never really took off. In 2019, Daniel Ricciardo never got onto the podium once, and many thought the decision to move to the French team was a backward step.

2020 didn’t fare much better. Ricciardo retired from the Austrian Grand Prix in the first race of the year and it took some time before it got any better. The 2020 British Grand Prix brought his equalled best finish for Renault, finishing fourth, though Ricciardo decided to put the feelers out elsewhere.

He signed a contract with McClaren for the 2021 season and ironically forced his way onto the podium twice with Renault at the back end of 2021.

Daniel Ricciardo is currently now in the second year of his new chapter at McClaren and got his first and last win in 2021 at the Italian Grand Prix, leading to jubilant scenes during the last lap. Promoted to the front row of the grid due to a grid penalty for Valtteri Bottas, Ricciardo held off Max Verstappen for 21 laps and took home the victory.

He finished two places behind McLaren teammate Lando Norris in the F1 standings, 8th overall, but things seem to be finally heading in the right direction for 2022.

Daniel Ricciardo net worth

Daniel Ricciardo has signed some lucrative contracts since his first race in Formula 1 with the likes of McLaren and Infiniti Red Bull Racing. Although the exact amount of his annual salary is undisclosed, and due to the fact he is private about his personal life, it is difficult to know exactly how much he is worth.

Daniel Ricciardo has an approximate net worth of $50 million (USD).

Other F1 Drivers

How to watch Daniel Ricciardo in F1

Each and every Formula One weekend is broadcast on Fox Sports (Fox Sports 506), in Australia. With Fox Sports you can watch every practice session, qualifying session and race live and on demand. There are several providers that allow you to access Fox Sports (Foxtel/Kayo Sports) on your home TV or with a mobile device. These options are all listed below, so there is no excuse to miss out when the next race gets underway.

Stream Formula One with Kayo

Kayo Sports streaming service gives you access to 14 dedicated sports channel including Fox Sports 506. This means that you can watch every Formula One Race Live or On Demand. You can check the service out for free with the Kayo 7-Day Trial offer for good measure. Kayo Sports is available for $25 (Basic plan, stream on two devices) or $35 (Premium Plan, stream on three devices) thereafter.

Live Stream Formula One with Foxtel Now

The Foxtel Now streaming service also offer access to Fox Sports 506 via their Sports Pack. That means that you get access to F1 as well as everything else Fox Sports has to offer, including ESPN and beIN. The Foxtel Now 10 Day Trial offer is available to new customers. To get the Sports Pack ($29/month) you must first subscribe to the Essential Pack option ($25/month). This means that watching F1 and TV entertainment after your trial will cost a total of $54 per month.

Watch Formula 1 Grand Prix with Telstra

Telstra customers can get great deals for watching both Kayo Sports and Foxtel Now, and therefore Formula 1. With the Telstra Kayo Offer, you can get a $10 per month reduction on Basic ($15/month) and Premium ($25/month) plans. The Foxtel Now Telstra offer gives you the first month for free, meaning you can access all of channel packs, including Sports, for free. The Kayo from Telstra offer also lasts for 12 months, which is ideal for the entire F1 season.

Which streaming services will show the F1 GP?

Below is a complete list of sports streaming services that will show all the Formula 1 races accessible for viewing in Australia. If other providers provide the Formula 1 Grand Prix races further down the line, the below list will be updated.

What to Watch after F1 Grand Prix

If you’re looking for something to watch after F1 on Kayo and Foxtel, there are over 50 live sports available at the touch of a button. These include Cricket, Soccer, Golf and more across channels from Fox Sports, ESPN and beIN. Check out what’s available to watch now with these providers below.

F1 Streaming devices

Looking for a great way to stream F1 at home? These sports streaming devices are perfect for just that, allowing you to stream all the action in High definition.