Daniel Ricciardo is preparing for life away from Formula 1 for the first in over a decade after losing his seat at Visa Cash App RB.
The Australian was dropped in favour of Liam Lawson for the final six races of the 2024 season and now finds himself without any commitments.
There’s bound to be a variety of options open to him, from media commitments to a return to racing in NASCAR or IndyCar, but he may decide to take some time away first.
The demands of travelling around the world for a sport like Formula 1 means that he would probably benefit from a break before heading into his next challenge.
Netflix would ‘love’ Daniel Ricciardo to cross the Atlantic to join NASCAR
Speaking on the Formula For Success podcast, Alex Jacques has watched and admired much of Ricciardo’s career from the commentary booth.
Discussing his next move, he believes that the 35-year-old won’t be able to stay away from North America’s NASCAR series.
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“I know he’s got offers aplenty already. I think the media work is going to be nailed on for him. I think he’ll be back in the Formula 1 paddock at some point.
“I suspect he’s not going to be able to resist a little bit of NASCAR. He’s a massive NASCAR fan, he really does appreciate it and love that.
“I think Netflix would love it if he went from Drive to Survive to – they had a series about NASCAR last year. They would love that transition I think for the viewing numbers.”
When could Ricciardo make his racing return?
The current NASCAR season has six races of the playoffs left, meaning that there’s no real opportunity for Ricciardo to find a cockpit and gather some experience at the backend of this year.
The 2025 championship will start in February, which would give the Australian driver a winter to train and prepare for his new challenge.
It’s important to remember that it’s an entirely new discipline of racing, so it could take him time to get up to speed.
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If Netflix were to follow him, it would make for box-office viewing, with his personality and the new journey combining for must-watch TV.
But, he may not be after this sort of gig and might look to remain in the Formula 1 paddock and stick to some media commitments there – all will be known in a matter of months.