Throughout his Formula 1 career, Daniel Ricciardo has always smiled through the pain. Not once has the Honey Badger let adversity come in between his pursuit towards Formula 1 glory. However, it would appear that his nightmarish stint with McLaren has broken him.

Daniel Ricciardo‘s entire approach to his racing career has been one of optimism and self-confidence. One can only imagine how deep his failures with McLaren would’ve cut to leave him devoid of any optimism when it comes to the final leg of the 2022 Formula 1 season.

While talking to Motorsport-Total about the final three races with the team, Ricciardo gave a very morbid response. “I choose to laugh because I don’t want to cry. But I will still do what I can in the last three races, but I have now reached a point where I no longer hope or think and expect the last three races to be fantastic.”

“I will do what I can, but on days like today you somehow feel a little helpless.” [translated via Google Translate]

Read More: “Don’t Know How I’m Continuing To Continue”: Fed Up Daniel Ricciardo Outright Blames McLaren in Harsh Post-Race Analysis

Even though Ricciardo has given up on this season, as his future in F1 looks bleak too, he still has a sense of stability in his life. Recently, he opened up about the secret that allows him to keep going despite his struggles on track with McLaren.

Daniel Ricciardo believes “love eliminates stress” as the Honey Badger admits he’s fallen in love

Being a Formula 1 driver cannot be easy. It’s not only about the toughness you need to drive these cars on the limit. But it also includes the mental pressure to perform at such a high level over the course of a season. However, according to Ricciardo, this is not a problem he faces due to his girlfriend, Heidi Berger, model, and daughter of ex-Ferrari and McLaren F1 star Gerhard Berger.

While on the Fitzy & Wippa podcast, the Honey Badger opened up about how his relationship helps him deal with the stress of being a Formula 1 driver.

He said, “Yeah mate, I’m in love, I got a good thing going, so yeah. I’ve got a good balance in life right now. I think love eliminates stress, yeah absolutely.”

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Does Daniel Ricciardo still have what it takes to compete in Formula 1?