“When you look at it, he seems quite cute and cuddly,” he told Red Bull in 2014. “But as soon as someone crosses his territory in a way he doesn’t like, he turns into a bit of a savage.”
“He’ll go after anything – tigers and pythons, he turns very quickly, but he’s a good guy. It’s supposed to be the most fearless animal in the animal kingdom.”
In his return to the grid this weekend after an eight month hiatus, replacing Nyck de Vries at AlphaTauri, Ricciardo has already showed his affable side. This weekend, he will once again try to serve up a reminder of his notorious on-track persona. Here’s a reminder of Ricciardo at his honey badger best.
2014 Hungarian GP
Fearless first win at the Hungaroring
The 2014 Hungarian Grand Prix – Ricciardo finest performance?
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Having captured his first career victory at the Canadian Grand Prix, Ricciardo found himself brimming with confidence ahead of F1’s visit to Hungary in 2014 – where he would produce perhaps his finest honey badger hour.
Qualifying fourth, the Aussie did an incredible job just keeping his car on the road, with the wet conditions claiming several early casualties – Sergio Perez‘s crash on the pit-straight causing a full blown safety car. Ricciardo made a decisive switch to a two stop strategy, putting him in the box seat as the race drew to a close – sitting third with two world champions ahead of him: Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso.
His first move on the Briton warmed the crowd – flying around the outside of the treacherous Turn 2 before sweeping down the inside of Turn 3 – but his next overtake on the leading Spaniard sent fans into a frenzy – a fearless dive down the inside of Turn 1 with nothing more than a switch of the steering wheel. Epic.
2014, 2016 and 2017 Italian GP
Monza masterclasses
A fearless overtake on Raikkonen at the 2017 Italian GP – one of many at Monza
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Overtaking at Monza‘s notorious first chicane can be a fairly daunting task, but Ricciardo made it a regular hunting ground during his time at Red Bull.
In 2014, he climbed from ninth to fifth, passing Jenson Button, Sergio Perez and Kevin Magnussen – all with a trademark dive down the inside of Turn 1. Two years later and at the very same corner, Ricciardo’s fearlessness was back on display once again, lunging from a long way back to make a preposterous pass on the Williams of Valtteri Bottas – flipping the bird in celebration as he sped away on the exit.
By 2017, he practically had the Prima Variante mastered, putting on another lion-hearted display and stealing fifth from Kimi Räikkönen with a move that looked more like an ambush than a genuine overtaking opportunity.
2017 Azerbaijan Grand Prix
Three for the price of one in Baku
A triple Turn 1 overtake on the streets of Azerbaijan
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Remembered among Ricciardo’s greatest on-track moments, the Aussie’s eventual victory in Azerbaijan was immortalised by an incredible triple-overtake at Turn 1 – surpassing Lance Stroll, Felipe Massa and Nico Hülkenberg with one daring move.
Originally qualifying tenth, Ricciardo survived a hectic start that saw a full safety car and red flag deployed inside the first 21 laps – his iconic move slotting him into third behind a squabbling Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel.
The pair had controversially collided behind the safety car earlier on, resulting in a 10 second penalty for Vettel and a loose headrest for Hamilton – forcing the Mercedes out of the lead with an extra stop. After the dust settled, Ricciardo was left to march to a dominant victory.
2018 Azerbaijan Grand Prix
Turning savage
The crunch moment: Ricciardo and Verstappen in Baku, 2018
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The 2018 Azerbaijan Grand Prix revealed Ricciardo’s “savage” side, but it came at a great cost.
In the midst of a multi-lap tussle with a young Max Verstappen, the Red Bull senior lunged for the inside, leaving little margin for error. So when Verstappen moved to block him under braking, the pair collided in dramatic fashion, throwing away a 22-point haul in team points.
The pair had exchanged places numerous times in the lead up to the accident and the fallout would ultimately end with the Aussie’s departure from the team at the end of the season. After all, honey badgers do often hunt solo…
2022 Hungarian Grand Prix
Old badger…new bite
Ricciardo’s hunts in Hungary as the Alpines squabble ahead
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Ricciardo’s time at the wheel of a McLaren won’t be remembered too fondly, but every now and then, he did show signs of his old self – a two-for-one overtake at the Hungaroring providing a rare highlight in a season to forget.
Trailing two squabbling Alpines, the Aussie set up a perfect double pass as Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon drifted wide at Turn 2 before sweeping around the outside at Turn 3.
By the time he reached the chequered flag, Ricciardo had fallen all the way down to 15th – unable to find any grip on a flailing hard tyre – but his performance was still praised highly, as the world got a glimpse of F1’s honey badger of old.