The way a person responds to challenging circumstances reveals their personality, and it seems that our F1 drivers are men of strong character. One of the finest examples is Daniel Ricciardo, who underwent the most challenging period of his career after leaving Red Bull in 2018. The McLaren conundrum was simply too much for the honey badger to manage. The flamboyant Australian explained in a recent, exclusive interview how the entire event left him in a terrible mental predicament.

The Australian driver and the Woking-based squad agreed to part ways after the latter’s two years of poor service. The young British driver, Lando Norris, eclipsed the honey badger, as the latter never felt a connection with his McLaren challenger. Things became worse for him as the team split ways with him since McLaren wanted to invest in a future prospect than in a dying star.

In a recent interview with motorsports.com, the honey badger recounted how he was put in a tough spot psychologically before he decided to join Red Bull as the reserve. He said, “At first it was absolutely not in my mind to return to Red Bull. After I lost my seat, I was just panicked and thinking, ‘Oh my God, what am I going to do now, what’s next?’ I was caught off guard and a little surprised.”

He added, “I think after a month I started talking to other teams. But deep down I didn’t know what I really wanted to do. I was thinking to myself, ‘Am I just doing this to stay on the grid, is this what I really want?’ When I became more honest with myself, I realized that I actually wanted to take a year off.”

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Ricciardo has only been away from the F1 grid for three months, but already the absence has been harsh to him as the honey badger is being lured back onto the track by the lightning-fast speeds, the smell of burning tires, and the surge of adrenaline.

Is Daniel Ricciardo ready to return?

The entire F1 fraternity found Daniel Ricciardo’s departure from the Papaya team to be shocking. What was more startling, though, was that the honey badger had fewer opportunities to join the team and had to see a young Australian replace him. The flamboyant Australian might have felt stress from all of this. So the man decided to go back to his “home” Red Bull rather than join the smaller squad.

In the Austrian team, he is in the role of testing the simulators, occasionally attending races, and showing up at team promotional events. The honey badger has never before had this much free time since his 2011 debut, yet it’s been only three months into the new season, and his demeanor indicates that he is missing the F1 tracks.

During a Red Bull partner event with Yeti, the Honey Badger spoke to the media and said, “ The signs are pointing towards getting back on the grid. I feel like that’s where I’m tracking in my head and a few of the habits that I’m having or doing is pointing towards that. It’s only been a few months [out of F1] but I think some itches have been scratched, so to speak.”

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Do you believe Danny Ric can find a seat in a top dog team as he is interested in making a comeback?