Ricciardo joined the Formula 1 paddock in 2011 as a Red Bull junior driver on loan to HRT, and he made his debut at the British Grand Prix that year.

He would then earn a move to Toro Rosso and, after two impressive seasons partnering Jean Eric Vergne, he found himself alongside Sebastian Vettel at Red Bull in 2014.

He took three race wins, and stunningly out-performed the four-time world champion en route to a third-placed Drivers’ Championship finish.

For all intents and purposes, it looked as though a world championship would surely beckon for the Australian.

Sadly though, this never materialised, and his place as the star of the Milton Keynes side was jeopardised by the arrival of then-18-year-old Verstappen, who claimed victory on his Red Bull debut in 2016 having replaced Daniil Kvyat.

Verstappen out-qualified Ricciardo 34 times in 58 races at Red Bull, cementing his authority at the team.

At the end of 2018, the 32-year-old decided it was time to move on, and he joined Renault for the 2019 season.

The Enstone squad had finished an impressive fourth in the Constructors’ Championship in 2018, providing Ricciardo with enough evidence to suggest that this was the team to help him progress towards the front of the grid, but they slumped back to fifth that year – 54 points behind McLaren.

He then joined the aforementioned Woking team ahead of last year and, despite a remarkable victory at the Italian Grand Prix – the team’s first since 2012 – he ended the Drivers’ Championship eighth, and was persistently out-performed by Lando Norris in a stuttering and difficult first season in papaya.

His position now is a far cry from his race-winning Red Bull days, but Ricciardo has no contrition over his career choices.

“Honestly, no,” he told the media at McLaren’s 2022 car launch at the McLaren Technology Centre when asked if he wishes he had stayed.

“I don’t want to say it like, ‘No, I don’t’, like snappy and disrespectful to Red Bull, because they gave me a lot in my career. They really made a lot of this possible for me.”

Having been part of the Red Bull programme from the age of 18, the Australian reveals that he simply needed to do something new with his career.

“I was there for five years, but I felt like I did reach a little bit of a point where I really felt like I personally needed something fresh,” he added.

“If I was still there maybe I wouldn’t have even been close to fighting for a title, you just don’t know.”

The eight-time race winner has previously described his tough 2021 campaign as the one that gave him the most personal growth, and he is not convinced that he would have improved as a racing driver as much as he has done had he remained at Red Bull beyond 2018.

“Of course, 2021 they won the driver’s title but, if I would have gone another year – 2019, 2020 and then ’21 – I’m not sure if I would have been a better version of myself,” he explained.

“I needed a bit of a change, and for sure there’s been some struggles through that change. But honestly, I don’t regret those changes I’ve been through, or the move I made at the time.”

Further, Ricciardo emphasised his happiness for friend and former team-mate Verstappen after his championship victory last year.

“That’s all a part of the sport, and obviously learning more about yourself and growing up, but I’ve had no ‘what could have been?’ [thoughts] when I saw Max win the title last year.

“None of those ‘poor me’ feelings. If anything I was happy for them to get back to the top. If it can’t be me then I’m happy for it to be them!”

The 2022 season begins on 20 March in Bahrain, following two pre-season tests in Barcelona and Sakhir.

The post Ricciardo: No ‘poor me’ feelings after seeing Verstappen win championship with Red Bull appeared first on Formula1News.co.uk.

Kolles, who previously served as team principal of various F1 teams – including Jordan, Midland, Force India and most recently HRT – said he believes the combination of Lawrence Stroll and Toto Wolff at Aston Martin could be “very dangerous” for Vettel.

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“I am of the opinion that the Stroll-Wolff combination is a very dangerous one for Sebastian Vettel,” Kolles said.

“Many factors are playing a role in the background,” he added, without elaborating any further.

Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll owns the Aston Martin F1 Team and British automotive company Aston Martin Lagonda, and it is rumoured that Wolff recently purchased a stake in the car-maker.

Kolles also commented on his previous relationship with Wolff and fired a jibe at the Austrian.

“Mr Wolff was a business partner of mine – I brought him into Formula 1, even if some people don’t want to know anything about that.”

Continuing, he downplayed Wolff’s contribution to Mercedes’ domination of the V6 turbo-hybrid era of Formula 1, saying: “The structures were all established by [former team principal Ross Brawn].

“He [Wolff] is called the lap dog of Mr Stroll. That is a quote from Bernie Ecclestone,” he added.

READ: Kravitz Criticises Russell & Bottas For Disrespectful Behaviour At Tamburello

The post Former Team Boss Warns Stroll-Wolff Combo Could Be ‘Very Dangerous’ For Sebastian Vettel appeared first on Formula1News.co.uk.

READ: Esteban Ocon ‘Sad’ To See Cyril Abiteboul Leave Renault

Chandhok looked back on his career in an interview with Formula1News.co.uk and shed light on what life is like after competing in the pinnacle of motorsport.

No Regrets About Joining A Backmarker

Chandhok’s career as an F1 racing driver was a short one, with him competing full-time for less than the first half of the 2010 season before being dropped by HRT.

He later joined Team Lotus as a reserve driver for the 2011 season, and that year’s German Grand Prix ultimately turned out to be his final race in Formula One.

When asked if he had any regrets about entering F1 with a team that was a long way off the pace of the midfield – and therefore gave him little chance of making an impact and proving himself – Chandhok emphasised that drivers have to be realistic when trying to make it in the pinnacle of motorsport.

“I think the reality is you have to look at what opportunities are there,” Chandhok said.

“There was no point in me staying in a junior formula. I had already done three seasons of GP2, so there was no point me staying there.”

Continuing, Chandhok said that even racing at the back of the grid in Formula One still furthered his career, both on and off the track.

“Being an F1 driver, even at the back of the grid, that still means you’re one of the 24 elite, at that time, and obviously now there’s only 20.

“And that still serves as a catalyst for your career, both as a driver and beyond being a driver.

“At the end of the day, the fact that I had those opportunities to race with teams, even though they were at the back of the grid, has meant that, forever beyond that, I will always be known as a Formula 1 driver.

“And that opens up career opportunities, whether it be driving sportscars, or racing in Formula E, or other championships around the world, and also in terms of non-driving work, like television and things like that,” he explained.

“So I don’t regret that at all. Obviously, it’s a no-brainer: everyone would rather join a team further up the grid. But you have to look at what opportunities there are, and in my case at that time, there wasn’t an opportunity to join a midfield team.

“At the end of the day, I would say that, for a young driver coming out of F2, it’s much better being at the back of the grid in F1 than not being in F1 at all. I still think there’s merit in that, in getting your foot in the door.”

Life After Racing In F1

After losing his seat at HRT to Sakon Yamamoto in 2010, Chandhok went on to work as a co-commentator on BBC Radio 5 Live’s F1 coverage for the remainder of the season.

And, after retiring from Formula One at the end of 2011, he went on to compete in WEC, the FIA GT Series and Formula E before turning his focus back to his media career.

Commenting on life after being an F1 racing driver, Chandhok told this publication that while some drivers can simply retire, others have to continue to earn a living, either by racing in another series, doing media work or exploring other avenues.

“People come out of F1 in different stages of their lives, different stages of their careers, and different financial positions.

“Some come out of F1 never having to work a day again in their life, and then they just invest their earnings wisely, relax and enjoy the rest of their life.

READ: Sebastian Vettel Reveals He Didn’t ‘Fight Back’ Against Ferrari’s Decision To Drop Him

“There are others who need to carry on working, for the next 15, 20, 30 years until they retire.

“So, you have to look at each drivers’ individual circumstances. And it’s also a matter of motivation,” he added.

The Future Of Formula One

Formula One is currently going through yet another period of transition, with new regulations set to come into effect in 2022, and a budget cap and a more equitable distribution of prize money being introduced this year.

Chandhok said he believes these measures will “further tighten up the field” and noted that, in terms of lap time, today’s backmarkers aren’t that far off the pace-setters when compared to prior eras.

READ: EXCLUSIVE: Romain Grosjean To Compete In IndyCar Before Joining Peugeot In WEC

“I don’t think we’re going to have a one-make series, first of all. That’s never going to happen in F1,” Chandhok asserted.

“There’s lots of steps being taken, in terms of the cost cap, in terms of the standardisation of certain components of F1, in terms of the 2022 rules, with certain limitations being brought in.

“I think there’s various things that are being introduced to try to level off the playing field.

“So there are steps being taken. I think these steps that are being taken will further tighten up the field,” he concluded.

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