"Hurts to hear but he’s at peace so that’s cool": Fans react to Daniel Ricciardo dismissing a possible move to Cadillac in 2026

F1 fans were left a bit emotional after former Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo declined a possible move to Cadillac for the 2026 season. The American automotive giant General Motors would be joining the grid as the 11th team in the first year of the new engine regulations under the Cadillac name.

With another two seats available, many names were thrown in the hat, including Ricciardo, who would bring the necessary experience and enjoys a massive fan base in the USA.

The former Visa Cash App RB driver was dropped unceremoniously by the Red Bull junior team at the 2024 Singapore Grand Prix in place of Liam Lawson despite coming close to replacing Sergio Perez on the senior team during the summer break.

However, when he was asked about the same by a fan while clicking a picture with him, Daniel Ricciardo bluntly shut down the reports and said:

"Nahhh, I'm done."

F1 fans took to social media to give their reactions to Daniel Ricciardo declining the offer to return to F1 on X, with one fan claiming:

"Hurts to hear but he’s at peace so that’s cool."

Another fan said:

"At least we have confirmation, so can the media finally leave him out of f1 comeback articles from now on."

"I love seeing Daniel happy but this breaks my heart," one fan said.

Here are some more fan reactions:

"Don’t get me wrong it hurts but I’d rather have him no where near the Red Bull clown show," said a fan.

"I actually think he's done racing all together, on the flip side, he looks very happy, so I am happy for him. Guess he's just gonna mess around travel to random pop up stores and enjoy life now, well deserved as well," wrote another.

"Good for him actually no more pressure and that smile can keep widening as the days pass," claimed another.

Daniel Ricciardo chimes in on his friendship with Max Verstappen

Former F1 driver Daniel Ricciardo stated that given that he and Max Verstappen were teammates from 2016 to 2018 in Red Bull, the bond made them closer throughout their time in the sport.

Speaking with Sky Sports, the Aussie reflected (via F1.com):

“It’s a funny thing, because as teammates you just know each other more. You spend so much time together, you see all the data, you see everything. From a professional point of view, you can get inside each other’s head.

“Obviously then, after my Red Bull stint, he went on and won championships. I think at the time we had such a rivalry but also such a… I think we really enjoyed it and it became such a respect.”

Daniel Ricciardo won eight races in his time decade-long career with seven of them coming in Red Bull machinery between 2014 and 2018. He won his eighth and final race win with McLaren at the 2021 Italian GP which was his only podium with the Woking-based outfit in his two-year stint with them.