London [UK], January 4 : Upon his return to the Formula One grid for the 2023 season, Daniel Ricciardo emphasising that racing is "the priority" moving forward.
After spending the majority of last year on the sidelines after leaving McLaren and rejoining Red Bull as a third driver, Ricciardo was called in at AlphaTauri mid-season to replace the faltering Nyck de Vries.
It was a welcome return to the hot seat for the Australian, whose signature grin and cheerful attitude have earned him a fan favourite over the years, whether strolling across the paddock, during media duties, or on chat programmes around the world.
But with his comeback developing, Ricciardo was asked about the importance of this time being seen as purely a racing driver and less of an entertainer - prompting the Australian to outline a revised approach.
However, as his recovery progressed, Ricciardo was challenged about the necessity of being recognised as a racing driver rather than an entertainer, forcing the Australian to describe a fresh strategy.
"I've definitely cut back on a lot of things, let's say, outside of racing, for sure. I still have some other interests outside of the sport, which I'm involved in, and I enjoy, but I've minimised a lot," Ricciardo was quoted as saying by Formula 1.
"I'm really just trying to, I think, make sure that... I think it always has been, but to obviously make the racing the priority. With the calendar now and the schedule, if I've got some time off, then I'm either in the gym or I'm putting my feet up and recovering for the next race," he added.
"I think just kind of prioritising a few things outside of this job. Especially the way the sport's growing, it's easy to get a little bit - I don't even want to say lost - but there's just so much going," the eight-time Grand Prix winner continued.
Ricciardo will remain with AlphaTauri alongside Yuki Tsunoda for the 2024 season, having gained six points from seven Grands Prix last year despite an accident that left him with wrist injuries and forced him to miss five races.
"There's so many things that you can be doing. It's all really exciting and really fun, and I am... I love that stuff, of course, because it's obviously a new experience and it's great. But I think having the time off for the start of the year, I realised that I was probably just doing too much sometimes and probably even just not prioritising myself in terms of my body and my recovery and all that. So, in a long way of saying it, just trying to focus on that," Ricciardo said.
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