Daniel Ricciardo has been involved in a war of words with 1997 Formula 1 World Champion Jacques Villeneuve, who has been highly critical of the Australian in recent weeks.
Jonny Herbert has decided to support Jacques Villeneuve in the 1997 F1 world champion’s disagreement with Daniel Ricciardo.
Villeneuve and the AlphaTauri driver have engaged in a series of confrontations during interviews and press conferences lately. Ricciardo is currently facing difficulties in regaining his top performance, and Villeneuve recently criticized the 34-year-old Australian, suggesting that his popularity on social media is the sole reason for his continued presence in Formula 1.
During the Canadian GP, Ricciardo responded vehemently, dismissing Villeneuve’s comments as baseless. Despite achieving his highest placement of the season by finishing in eighth place, the Australian driver is still far from achieving his desired level of performance.
Herbert mentioned in an interview with Lord Ping that he observed Jacques’ comments regarding Daniel Ricciardo being a social media driver and the manner in which he expressed them. He emphasized that Jacques’ remarks were accurate, even though some individuals may not appreciate the truth at times.
Herbert stated that Daniel’s current performance is not up to par, indicating that it may be time for him to retire from racing. He acknowledged that not everyone may agree with this perspective, but stressed the importance of maintaining high performance levels in the sport.
I believe he still holds onto his beliefs. Whenever Jacques, who tends to be pessimistic, expresses his opinions, Daniel almost responds with a dismissive attitude, saying, “You don’t know what you’re talking about. Get lost.” It seems like Jacques still has a mental barrier that prevents him from realizing his potential.
When questioned about Villeneuve’s remarks prior to the race, Ricciardo remarked, “I’ve heard he’s been talking nonsense. But that’s nothing new. I think he’s had a few too many knocks to the head.”
I am uncertain whether he participates in ice hockey or a similar sport. I have no interest in acknowledging him, and I hold no regard for the opinions of those individuals. There is more I could say, but we shall disregard him.
The Australian celebrity has faced numerous challenges in recent years, despite delivering a commendable performance at the Canadian Grand Prix. In the previous year, Ricciardo joined AlphaTauri following the removal of Dutch driver Nyck De Vries. Nevertheless, Herbert remains skeptical about Ricciardo’s ability to regain his peak performance.
“He’s just not the same Daniel anymore,” he remarked. “Ever since his time at McLaren alongside Lando, it became evident that Lando was consistently faster than him. Sure, Daniel had some standout performances like at Monza, but those were just isolated incidents. Consistency is key.
“That’s what sets apart drivers like Lando, Oscar, Max, Charlie, and Carlos. The truly talented ones can deliver exceptional performances every single time. Daniel used to be one of them. There’s no denying his skill and he used to be consistently impressive. They even called him ‘Mr Overtake’ because of his incredible overtaking maneuvers. But ever since his stint at McLaren, that spark seems to have faded.”
Ricciardo has a chance to accumulate additional points this weekend as F1 makes its way to Barcelona for the Spanish Grand Prix.
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