Daniel Ricciardo seemingly confirmed his retirement from Formula 1 when directly asked about rumours linking him to the Cadillac F1 project.

While the FIA approved, the union of Andretti Global and General Motors brand Cadillac was initially unable to get the green light from Formula One Management to join the F1 grid, though a sudden breakthrough changed that situation, with the team accepted as a provisional 11th entrant for F1 2026, while it has been renamed from Andretti to Cadillac.

Daniel Ricciardo declares ‘I’m done’ to Cadillac F1 rumours

Additional reporting by Thomas Maher

GM will become an F1 engine manufacturer as of 2028, with a Ferrari deal agreed until then, while the Andretti family remains involved through 1978 World Champion Mario Andretti, who will be a director on the board.

And Andretti has given an insight into how their first F1 driver line-up will look. He confirmed that the team is looking for a combination of an experienced F1 racer and an American driver, which was the spark for Ricciardo F1 comeback rumours.

Asked by NBC News whether fielding an American driver like Colton Herta is a Cadillac priority – Herta having previously been linked with Sauber and Red Bull’s second team – Andretti replied: “Right now, I think yes.

“You mentioning candidates — he’s definitely one that’s considered.

“I think you have to keep those options open, since it’s going to be a whole next season where we’re not going to be players.

“There are more drivers available than teams at the moment.

“Ten teams seems a lot, but there’s a lot more drivers, lot more talent out there.

“From our standpoint, I think the play at the beginning would be to have one experienced driver — nationality doesn’t matter — and then a young American talent. These are the objectives at the moment.”

So, could Daniel Ricciardo be Cadillac F1’s experienced racer? The eight-time grand prix winner – who was axed from the Red Bull B-team following the 2024 Singapore Grand Prix – enjoys a huge fanbase in the United States as a key figure in the hit Netflix F1 docuseries ‘Drive to Survive’.

However, a video has emerged on social media which suggests Cadillac are set for disappointment on any approach for Ricciardo, as when asked: “No Cadillac?”, Ricciardo comes back with: “Nah, I’m done.”

OFICIAL: Daniel Ricciardo announces retirement from Formula 1 pic.twitter.com/Ty9fxX7VlR

— Rhys 🇦🇺❗️ (@SulloReport) December 15, 2024

Ricciardo’s F1 career has been in limbo since his post-Singapore GP axing, the Honey Badger having struggled to make an impression against team-mate Yuki Tsunoda as he auditioned for a return to Red Bull at the expense of Sergio Perez.

But, it would seem that Ricciardo has provided closure to his F1 career.

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Meanwhile, Liam Lawson, the driver who replaced Ricciardo at Racing Bulls, has emerged as the favourite to replace Perez for F1 2025.

After Ricciardo’s 2018 Red Bull exit, Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon who followed struggled to impress alongside Max Verstappen – now a four-time World Champion with Red Bull – while Perez fell into a deep F1 2024 rut which has likely forced his departure.

However, Lawson, if he gets the nod to step up to Red Bull for F1 2025, is not feeling any trepidation despite Verstappen having developed quite the reputation as a team-mate killer.

“I don’t know what they felt when they were there,” Lawson told PlanetF1.com.

“You can always look at it as an outsider and think ‘this is what it looks like they felt’, but I don’t know what it was like for them. I believe, for anybody to go up against Max, you have to be realistic and know that he’s the fastest guy on the grid right now, and that you’re not gonna be out-qualifying the guy by half a second.

“It’s not gonna be something that’s really gonna be happening. For me, it’s more the opportunity that’s there to learn from the best.

“For me as a driver, to be able to go in against the guy who’s won four world championships and is well seasoned…. he’s been in that car for a long time.

“That car is almost… not developed around him, but he’s been a massive part of developing that car and understands it very well.

“In terms of how to drive it, it’s all right there on paper. When you see all the data that he brings in, for me as a driver to be alongside that, to be able to learn from him and have all that access, I think that’s what’s exciting for me about the opportunity… if that opportunity was to come in the future.”

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