It's time for Australia to face the prospect Daniel Ricciardo's Formula 1 career could be done. F1
As many an NRL or AFL coach can attest, once the speculation reaches the point where management are being questioned over your future, the situation is almost always terminal.
In 2014, his first season with Red Bull, Ricciardo was rated the second best driver in the sport, with Tony Dodgins writing, "You couldn't argue if Ricciardo had been given the No.1 slot. Without doubt a potential world champion."He was third in 2015, second in 2016, third in 2017, fifth in 2018, seventh in 2019, and fourth in 2020.
Through the first half of 2021 the story revolved around how Ricciardo was struggling to adapt to the McLaren, which required a driving style that suited Norris much more than Ricciardo. The Australian led home a 1-2 finish in Italy, but Norris was undoubtedly the team leader across the course of the season.
But it's also the venue for two nightmare outings for McLaren. In 2021, he endured the indignity of being lapped by Norris, while this year he crashed during practice, a rare error from which he never recovered.