Red Bull admits mishandling Ricciardo exit

Red Bull mishandled Daniel Ricciardo’s final race in Formula 1.

That’s the claim not only of numerous pundits and fans, but also Ricciardo’s friend and former teammate Max Verstappen.

Liam Lawson admits both he and Ricciardo knew about the looming RB seat change well prior to the Singapore GP weekend - but were banned from saying anything until a post-event statement some days later.

Team advisor Dr Helmut Marko explained: "Daniel Ricciardo’s departure was announced after the race weekend in Singapore for compelling reasons related to commercial agreements."

Triple world champion Verstappen is unimpressed.

"I think it could have been handled a little bit differently," the Dutchman said in Austin. "If he can’t handle it and say it his way, it’s a bit of a shame.

"He did a lot for Formula 1. He’s won races, he did incredible races and he deserves - let’s say - a great exit."

Even RB team boss Laurent Mekies agrees with that sentiment.

"Yes, you’re right, it was not ideal to go through the weekend in that way," he said.

"First of all for him, on a professional and on a personal level, but also for the whole team around him. For many different reasons, we chose together to go into that weekend without announcing," the Frenchman added.

"From that point onwards, we had to deal with it. It’s a decision that, in hindsight, we may or may not do differently."

Eventually, without actually confirming the news in Singapore, Ricciardo’s tears, body language and the reaction of those around him made clear at the time that his F1 career was over.

Mekies said: "I think in one way or another, we all found a way to express how much love there is from the sport to Daniel. I don’t know if it would have been better or worse, but certainly different, more traditional.

"But I can say that the amount of love and empathy we felt through that weekend was something outstanding and something that shows that he’s bigger than an F1 driver - bigger than F1."