Racing Bulls explain reason for regret over Ricciardo F1 exit

Racing Bulls CEO Peter Bayer has expressed his regret over how his team handled the departure of Daniel Ricciardo.

The Faenza-based squad jettisoned the popular Australian out of its driver line-up following last year's Singapore Grand Prix, with Liam Lawson brought in to replace him.

The 22-year-old has since moved up to parent team Red Bull, where he will partner Max Verstappen in the 2025 F1 season, whilst Ricciardo opted to retire, bringing the curtain down on a 257-grand prix career.

The way in which the team, then RB, managed the 35-year-old's exit was widely criticised at the time, with the eight-time grand prix winner cutting a despondent figure across his final weekend in F1.

Speaking to RacingNews365 in an exclusive interview, Bayer shared what he would do differently about the way Ricciardo left his team - and the championship he called home since 2011.

When asked if he had any regrets about how things unfolded at the Marina Bay Street Circuit last September, the Austrian replied: "Yes," before elaborating.

"I was still working for the FIA when Kimi Raikkonen had his farewell in Abu Dhabi, with his family on the grid and a nice picture and everything, and I think that's what you ultimately wish for an athlete," he explained.

"Daniel was extremely valuable for us in so many areas, helping the team. We had a lot of positive momentum through Daniel.

"[I] remember that when he came to Faenza for the first time and we welcomed him, it was an amazing moment. It was that injection of energy and so it was a beautiful moment."

Bayer: Ricciardo 'ticked every single box'

To Bayer, Ricciardo was the complete package, especially for a team looking to raise its profile and level of performance.

"He was great as a driver, he recalled. "He was helping us with finding the way forward with the car, which is very difficult and very complex.

"He helped Yuki [Tsunoda], he helped even Liam [Lawson] - he was there as a coach.

"He was very popular with our sponsors. Honestly, the whole 360 degree spectrum of a team, Daniel ticked every single box."

Quiet exit was Ricciardo's parting wish

However, Bayer was keen to underline the fact that it was Ricciardo himself who did not want fanfare around his final grand prix.

The Austrian reflected on the 35-year-old's work ethic, even in the final days of his F1 career, speaking to his desire to focus on the job at hand.

"So, yes, I would have loved to give him that celebration, but at the same time, it was a conscious decision of somebody who has been so long in the sport, who actually left and came back," Bayer said.

"We may never forget that we actually were the ones who gave him that possibility again. And it's not actually that he was waiting on the sideline, and I think he enjoyed that.

"He was so committed, he was so focused, and even in Singapore, he didn't want to speak about a farewell party.

"He was like: 'I'm here to race, I'm ready to race. I'm focusing on the race. I'm focusing on the qualifying', and we respected that."