5 F1 drivers feat Daniel Ricciardo who didn't get the farewell that they deserved

With Daniel Ricciardo making it clear that he's not coming back to the sport with Cadillac in 2026, it does appear that the driver is more or less at peace with what he's done in F1 and is more than likely calling time on his career.

Considering the highly underwhelming manner in which the driver's career ended, there are certainly a few that feel a better farewell could have been given to the driver.

It's not often when an established driver leaves the F1 stage, that he's not given a proper send-off. However, it has happened in some instances, due to circumstances or just mismanagement in general.

Daniel Ricciardo is now in all probability out of the sport after what has been a storied career where there were times that he was considered the best driver on the grid as well. The Australian is, however, not the only one who did not have the best farewell from F1.

Throughout the history of Formula 1, just like Ricciardo, there have been drivers who have suffered a similar fate. In this feature, we're taking a look at some of the high-profile drivers in the sport who didn't get the proper farewell. So without further ado, let's get straight to it.

#1. Daniel Ricciardo

The first name on the list is, of course, Daniel Ricciardo. The Australian driver was out of the sport when McLaren decided to replace him a year before his contract ended in 2022.

The driver was then picked up by Red Bull and given a shot with AlphaTauri in 2023 after an impressive tire test. With Ricciardo having a somehow impressive run in 2023, the driver got himself another year with the Red Bull sister team, wherein if he impressed the stakeholders, he would get a shot at the senior team.

Unfortunately, that's not how things panned out. Daniel Ricciardo's performances were not good enough, and the driver's sudden departure was announced after the 2024 F1 Singapore GP race weekend ended.

With no official confirmation made, nobody was even able to give the Australian the farewell he deserved, and with no way back into the sport, it does appear that his run in F1 is done and dusted.

#2. Jacques Villeneuve

Jacques Villeneuve was one of the strangest cases of how a driver would just fall from prominence after being so impressive at the start of his career. After finishing second in his first F1 season, the Canadian won the title in his second year in 1997.

Villeneuve's career took a turn for the worse after that, and despite getting a few opportunities here and there near the end of it, the performance from the driver was just not there as he ended his career getting fired mid-season by BMW Sauber.

It was thus quite ironic when Villeneuve accused Daniel Ricciardo of sticking around in the sport for far too long in 2024, especially after how his career trajectory panned out.

#3. Mika Hakkinen

Mika Hakkinen had some of the more weird exits from F1, as the Finnish legend never officially retired from the sport. The driver took a sabbatical from driving for McLaren at the time because he was burnt out by the strains of the championship fights.

While McLaren's Ron Dennis replaced Hakkinen with fellow Finn Kimi Raikkonen soon after, if the 2x champion wanted to make a return to the sport, there was always something that could be arranged.

As it turned out, one Hakkinen was out of the sport; he never came back and in 2002 announced his retirement.

#4. Nigel Mansell

Another name that ideally should have gotten a much better farewell was Nigel Mansell. During the late 80s and early 90s, Mansell was one of the biggest superstars in Britain and F1, and his star power took off even more when he won the world title in 1992 and would then go to IndyCar to win the championship in 1993.

From that point onwards, however, Nigel's career couldn't really reach the same heights. There were times when he retired from F1 but then would have a cameo with Williams and then with McLaren, with neither of them being too fruitful. With no official timeline set on when he would call it a day, Mansell just never got the kind of farewell that someone with his storied career should have.

#5. Nelson Piquet

When a 3-time world champion retires from the sport, there should be a proper send-off. Unfortunately for Nelson Piquet, this never happened. The Brazilian abruptly announced his retirement in January 1992, making 1991 his last competitive season.

One of the sadder aspects, however, with such a call was that nobody knew that 1991 was the last time Piquet would be racing in F1, and hence there was no proper send-off for the driver from the paddock.