Daniel Ricciardo has said farewell to a "wild and wonderful" 14-year Formula One journey after the popular Australian driver was sacked by Red Bull Racing.
The eight-time F1 race winner was let go by his RB team on Thursday, an outcome which even the 35-year-old himself had been expecting after his disappointing 2024 campaign.
It means the end of a distinguished road for the former Red Bull and McLaren star, who, over 14 seasons in F1, became one of the most popular and effervescent characters on the circuit, with his infectious smile lighting up the circus.
"I’ve loved this sport my whole life," Ricciardo said on Instagram, after RB had broken the news of the split.
'To the teams and individuals that have played their part, thank you. To the fans who love the sport sometimes more than me haha thank you.
"It’ll always have its highs and lows but it’s been fun and truth be told I wouldn’t change it.
"Until the next adventure."
His farewell had effectively been confirmed at last Sunday's Singapore Grand Prix by his RB team giving his car a fresh set of tyres so he could go out and set the fastest lap of the race as his final hurrah.
He did just that.
RB team principal Laurent Mekies said in a statement they "would like to thank Daniel for his hard work across the last two seasons with us.
"He has brought a lot of experience and talent to the Team with a fantastic attitude, which has helped everyone to develop and foster a tight team spirit.
"Daniel has been a true gentleman both on and off the track and never without that smile. He will be missed, but will always hold a special place within the Red Bull family."
The 22-year-old New Zealander Liam Lawson, 13 years younger than Ricciardo, will be the Aussie's replacement for the final six races of the season.
Ricciardo made his F1 debut in 2011 and claimed three poles and eight victories over 258 grands prix. He finished third in the championship in 2014 and 2016 while at Red Bull, as well as driving for HRT, Renault, McLaren and Red Bull 'sister' teams, Toro Rosso and Alpha Tauri, now RB.
The last of his eight wins came at Monza in 2021 with McLaren at the Italian Grand Prix, but it wasn't enough to make up for an otherwise underwhelming stay with the british team, which he left after the 2022 season, when he was replaced by fellow Australian Oscar Piastri.
He has been consistently outdriven at RB since by his teammate Yuki Tsunoda, and is 14th in this year's drivers' standings, 10 points behind the Japanese in 12th.
A measure of Ricciardo's popularity with his fellow drivers could quickly be gleaned on social media by a host of tributes following news of his exit.
Seven-time world champ Lewis Hamilton simply posted "Legend" while his Mercedes teammate George Russell added: “Going to miss you mate.”
His old Red Bull teammate, world champion Max Verstappen, declared: "Head up mate! Many more beautiful moments to come.”
