Ricciardo under fire in return: 'I'm not an entertainer'

Daniel Ricciardo is back on the F1 paddock after his injury, but in the press conference, the Australian was under fire. He was asked if his talent as a driver is getting a bit underwhelmed by his off-track publicity.

"I would say in short, no," Ricciardo answered. The AlphaTauri driver visibly looks a little surprised by the question, but of course, it is not entirely surprising. Ricciardo once entered the paddock in Austin on a horse, and the Australian became popular mainly because of his mannerisms in the Netflix series Drive to Survive.

"All of our profiles have grown in the last few years, in particular since Drive to Survive. I think with me it's my personality and fun for the sport. That probably got a little bigger as well because of that, and it draws a few LOLs every now and then. First and foremost, I certainly see myself as a race car driver, not an entertainer or anything like that."

Ricciardo returns to basics

Still, in some situations, Ricciardo notices that people pay more attention to his performance in the series than his performance on the track. "People come up to me and they say 'you were great in that season'. I’m like, 'racing season or Drive to Survive season?"

In many cases, of course, it is the latter. There hasn't been much to smile about for Ricciardo in recent years. At McLaren, he did not get it right, and his contract was eventually torn up. Now, Ricciardo has been given a second chance as Nyck de Vries' replacement and so hopes to get himself back in the picture as a driver as well.

"We're all also building profiles and a bit of a brand, but it's not anything that's taken away from the racing side of it. That's first and foremost. After my time out, it certainly made me figure out what I'm about and how I want to go racing. Probably just removing a few things and kind of going back to a little bit of the basics. Just making sure that I am seen as a race car driver who's still hungry and determined and not someone who's just here for a good time."