Daniel Ricciardo’s girlfriend Heidi Berger once went on a nerve-wracking “F1 mission” with $85M ‘McDreamy’ racer

Daniel Ricciardo's partner Heidi Berger was once a co-passenger to Patrick Dempsey in a McLaren. He took her for a lap around the Red Bull Ring in 2019.

While he is known for his role as Dr. Derek Shepherd "McDreamy" in the American medical drama series Grey's Anatomy, the $85 million worth Dempsey (per Celebrity Net Worth) is also an established racing driver. He took part in GT racing championships regularly between 2004 and 2015. Dempsey also finished the 24 Hours of LeMans in 2nd place in the GTE Am class.

In 2019, Berger had the opportunity to partner with him for a lap around the Red Bull Ring, home to F1's Austrian Grand Prix, and Red Bull Racing's home track. Berger shared a post on Instagram showcasing her experience and captioned it:

"Went on a suicide mission @redbullracing"

Heidi Berger is an actress and has family roots in racing.

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Who is Heidi Berger? Exploring more about Daniel Ricciardo's partner

Born in Monte Carlo, Monaco, Berger is the daughter of former Austrian F1 driver Gerhard Berger. He raced in Formula 1 for over a decade, swapping between Ferrari, McLaren, and a few other teams.

His best finish in the championship was third place, which he achieved twice with the Italian team. He also registered 10 victories.

Meanwhile, his daughter Heidi has established herself as an actress. She studied theater in London for a year after finishing high school. She has appeared in shows like Meiberger - Im Kopf Des Taters, Trakehnerblut, and Where is Elisa?

Her relationship with Daniel Ricciardo was officially announced in 2022, however, it is reported that the two have been dating since around 2019. He was then racing for Renault, having departed from Red Bull. He raced with the team for two seasons before moving to McLaren, where he raced for the same time period.

After a short sabbatical from F1, Ricciardo was called to AlphaTauri mid-season in 2023 (now called VCARB) to replace Nyck de Vries. He raced with the team until the 2024 Singapore Grand Prix after which his contract was terminated mid-season. Currently, there seems to be no place for him on the next season's grid.

Red Bull had signed Ricciardo as their third driver after his contract with McLaren was terminated at the end of the 2022 F1 season. While that can certainly be a way for him to mark his presence on the grid, he does not want to be confined to that role again. He said (via Racingnews365):

"No. It made a lot of sense to keep one foot in the door, with the big picture to try and get back in at Red Bull. I think if I was to do that again, there's not really...I'm not going to restart my career. I'm also 35."

There could be options for him in other racing series, but Daniel Ricciardo has not disclosed any such plans for the future.