RB reveal Daniel Ricciardo regret over “not ideal” F1 exit in Singapore

RB team principal Laurent Mekies has conceded Daniel Ricciardo’s exit from F1 was “not ideal”.

Ricciardo bowed out of F1 following the Singapore Grand Prix.

Rumours were rife heading into the weekend about Ricciardo’s future, but crucially, nothing had been announced by either VCARB or Red Bull.

Riccardo’s ultimate F1 exit was announced following the Singapore GP, approximately a week later.

It meant that Ricciardo wasn’t able to have a traditional farwell.

Speaking in the FIA press conference in Austin, Mekies admitted it was a frustrating situation.

“It was frustrating and yes you’re right it was not ideal to go through the weekend in that way, first of all for him on a professional and personal level, and for the whole team around him,” Mekies said.

“We did have discussions before the weekend. For many different reasons we chose together to go into that weekend without announcing. From that point onwards we had to deal with it.

“It’s a decision in hindsight we may or may not do differently but it’s something we were both, the team and the drivers, were onboard to go through that now.”

Mekies feels that Ricciardo was still given a great send off though.

“I think in one way or another, we all found a way to express how much love there is from the sport to Daniel, from the fans to Daniel,” he explained. “I don’t know if it would have been better or worse.

“Certainly different, more traditional. I can hopefully say that the amount of love and empathy we felt through that weekend was something else and something that shows he’s bigger than an F1 driver. He’s bigger than F1.”