Daniel Ricciardo addressed agents at Ray White Connect 2025
Daniel Ricciardo’s Formula 1 exit came without a farewell lap, but the Aussie fan favourite has re-emerged on home soil in one of his first public appearances since his abrupt mid-2024 split from Red Bull.
Addressing an audience of 3000 real estate professionals at Ray White’s Connect 2025 event on the Gold Coast, the 257-race veteran poked fun at his new unshaven look.
“I had a fallout with my barber and then I lost my razor. It’s been a tough six months,” Ricciardo said.
“I actually FaceTimed my mum last night and she said, ‘Oh, so you will get a bit of a cut before tomorrow?’ I told her no. Look, she loves me unconditionally, but I think she’d prefer I looked a little cleaner. I’m still hygienic — the beard is just my comfort right now.”
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He touched on themes of resilience and overcoming setbacks
Since leaving the grid – he was dropped with six races to go after the Singapore Grand Prix – the 36-year-old has taken his foot off the accelerator, spending much of the past year out of the public eye.
“This year has been a little bit of self-exploration,” the Perth-born star said.
“I’ve lived this crazy, high-speed life for so long and I just sat into a little bit of stillness. I wasn’t always surrounded by a tonne of people giving their opinions and thoughts.
“I’ve just had a lot of me-time…figuring out who I am other than the race car driver that I was for so long”.
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Ricciardo after last year’s F1 Grand Prix of Singapore. Photo: Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images)
Interviewed by sports presenter Mel McLaughlin, he touched on themes relevant to his audience of resilience, backing yourself and recovering from setbacks – delivered in his trademark light-hearted style that’s fuelled his popularity since Netflix’s Drive to Survive.
On his reputation as one of the sport’s “ultimate overtakers”, Ricciardo said he would “rather crash but try” than play it safe.
It’s quite scary because there’s a level of unpredictability – you don’t know what the car in front is going to do,” he said.
“Most overtaking comes with risk… but it’s the most fun. It’s racing – and what’s the point of doing it otherwise?”
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Ricciardo’s popularity surged again after the Netflix docuseries Drive to Survive
Asked how he moved on from disaster, Ricciardo pointed to Monaco 2016, when he missed out on a win due to a botched pit stop.
“I was leading, I came into the pits and the tyres weren’t ready. You go from being on top of the world and all of it crumbles,” he said.
“We are the drivers, but we are not the sport. We’re not bigger than the team. People hurt, people feel as much as we feel, and it is their livelihood as well.”
On the subject of his signature celebratory shoey – drinking champagne from his race boot – Ricciardo didn’t miss a beat when asked what it tastes like.
“Success,” he said. “If it’s chilled, it numbs the taste… one mouthful of champagne and I’m buzzing.”
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Ray White managing director Dan White opened the conference
Earlier, Ray White managing director Dan White had opened the conference with a call to uphold the group’s core values and “bring the full depth of its team to every client”.
“We have been recently confronted with some challenging issues where the privilege was disrespected and a decision was made to move on from that relationship,” he said.
“The more transparent we are, the better for our customers… we run toward transparency and want to be proud of every transaction.”
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