RB CEO, Peter Bayer has revealed that Daniel Ricciardo’s destiny hung within the stability till his failure to make it past Q1 in Singapore.
Whereas the writing was clearly all around the wall, and Liam Lawson hovering over his shoulder just like the grim reaper, the Australian believed he may nonetheless, with the fitting consequence, save his drive, at the very least till season finish in Abu Dhabi.
Whereas Friday was a “actually good day” for the Australian, come qualifying he struggled with the softs and did not make it out of Q1, whereas teammate Yuki Tsunoda put his automotive eighth on the grid.
“It was a horrible second when he exited in Q1,” Bayer tells Auto Motor und Sport. “You could possibly already hear on the radio that his world had collapsed.”
The workforce was broadly criticised for failing to substantiate that it was Ricciardo’s ultimate look, not permitting him to ‘rejoice’ his departure with the followers, however Bayer insists that this was the Australian’s alternative.
“We sat collectively in our workplace at two o’clock within the morning and requested him what we should always do. He instructed us that we should always simply let him drive the race. He simply did not need any nonsense.
“We had agreed with Daniel that we’d not talk it,” he provides. “We knew that we’d look a bit outdated as a workforce. However we additionally did it to guard the driving force. It was his want.
“He believed proper to the tip that he would end on the entrance in qualifying and present everybody,” says Bayer. “I’ve by no means seen such psychological energy in an athlete. And I have been in numerous sports activities.”
So as to add salt to his wounds, Ricciardo successfully completed the race final, a lap down on former teammate Lando Norris.
Conscious that it was most likely his ultimate outing in an F1 automotive, at race finish Ricciardo sat in his automotive for a couple of minutes earlier than heading again to the workforce’s hospitality suite the place he was greeted by a guard of honour and given a standing ovation.
“As a workforce, we put ourselves in entrance of him,” insists Bayer. “If Daniel had pushed all the best way to Abu Dhabi, then in fact we’d have celebrated his farewell with fireworks and a photograph on the grid, identical to Raikkonen again then. That is what everybody would have needed.”
