Ricciardo retires from F1 to become Ford Racing ambassador

Daniel Ricciardo has closed a chapter of his Formula 1 career and opened another outside the cockpit, with his final FIA superlicence penalty point expiring on September 1 and the Australian confirming he has retired from top-level racing to become a global ambassador for Ford Racing. The moves come nearly a year after his last Grand Prix start at the 2024 Singapore race for Racing Bulls, which marked the end of a turbulent return to the sport.

Ricciardo’s final live penalty point dated to the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, where he received a five second time penalty for squeezing Nico Hülkenberg at the start and an additional 10 seconds after a front jackman touched his car too early while serving the sanction. Under Formula 1’s penalty points system, introduced in 2014, points lapse after 12 months, and officials note his record is now clear. His farewell race in Singapore followed weeks later when Racing Bulls replaced him with Liam Lawson for the season’s closing rounds.

In a statement published by Ford Racing as part of the ambassador announcement, Ricciardo said, "While my racing days are behind me, my love for anything with wheels will always remain high, and for that I am...