Daniel Ricciardo is enraged with Formula One’s fucking fools
Daniel Ricciardo’s spat with Formula 1 executives has erupted once more after a social media post that left the Australian scratching his head.
Daniel Ricciardo’s spat with Formula 1 executives has flared up again following a social media message by the Australian driver.
This week, the McLaren driver took aim at senior Formula 1 leaders for the inhumane glorification of accidents in the sport’s continuing promotion.
The 31-year-old was among those expressing scorn for Formula 1 following the showing of replays of former Haas driver Romain Grosjean’s terrifying fireball crash during last year’s Bahrain Grand Prix.
The former Renault and Red Bull racer was vehement in the wake of Grosjean’s accident, calling it “disgusting” that the race’s live television coverage continued to screen a loop of replays of the terrifying incident during the hour-long break before the race’s re-start.
Ricciardo’s outburst prompted him to agree to meet with Formula 1 director of marketing and communications Ellie Norman in December in order to find a peaceful conclusion.
That seemed to be the end of it, but an interview with Ricciardo has confirmed he is far from done with his campaign to purge the sport of its own employees.
According to Ricciardo, UK lifestyle magazine Square Mile Formula 1’s internal coverage of accidents and on-track drama continues to routinely cross the line.
He cites a social media post from last year in which the official Formula One account touted crashes as some of the season’s most anticipated moments, a season that was famously disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I believe last year, F1 released a list of the ‘top ten moments of the year’ on their social media sites, and eight of the ten were crashes,” he explained.
“All I was thinking was, you guys are f***ing fools. Perhaps 12-year-old children want to see that type of content, which is understandable given their ignorance, but we are not children. Simply do better, gentlemen. Make a decent effort.”
According to him, the movement toward drama has been aided by the critically acclaimed Netflix documentary series Drive To Survive.
“I thought Drive To Survive’s first season was fantastic,” he said.
“I spend some time in the United States, and I found it literally on each outing.
It was the first time I was recognized and people made references to that television series. Thus, it worked wonders for us – not to mention social media – but figures on social media went insane. It benefited both us and the sport significantly. I’m referring to the second season, where there were a few episodes or sections that felt a little forced. They attempted to instill a sense of competition between me and [Carlos] Sainz, but it never materialized. To put it another way, he is no more a rival than anyone else. There was no personal animosity toward him, but I believe [Netflix] desired something, as a number of questions revolved around Carlos.
“Perhaps no one heard, but I was thinking, he’s good. I’m sure I have other guys that I hate in addition to Carlos… I know, he dresses like a 60-year-old, but he’s fine in other ways.”
Ricciardo’s remarks are in stark contrast to those made following his initial meeting with the sport’s marketing chief.
“I believe she was extremely receptive and appreciative, and I believe she also acknowledged my concerns,” he said at the time.
“She didn’t argue; I believe she was attempting to listen and learn as well, about how they could do it differently. However, she also explained to me why they broadcasted what they did.”
It came after he publicly chastised the Bahraini government last year.
“The way Grosjean’s incident was broadcast over and over again, the replays over and over, it was totally insensitive and inconsiderate to his family, and to all of our families watching,” he said.
“We’re going to race again in an hour, and every time we turn on the television, we see a ball of fire and his car has been slashed in half.
That is, we will see it tomorrow; we do not have to see it today.
For me, it was entertainment, and they were manipulating all of our feelings, which I found rather revolting.”
Formula 1 defended the decision to replay the incident at the time, stating that the video was only replayed until officials were assured Grosjean and the marshals who assisted him were healthy.
