"We got humbled yesterday": Daniel Ricciardo shares post about meeting up with Max Verstappen for a game of paddle
Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen recently met with each other for a game of paddle. Both shared the court and even played a game with a brilliant 13-year-old paddle player.
After the triple-header in the US, Mexico, and Brazil, F1 goes into a short two-week break before the final two races of the 2024 season. During this time, Max Verstappen spent some time with former F1 driver Ricciardo playing paddle.
The Aussie shared an image of himself and the Dutchman standing together on the paddle court on his official Instagram account. With them, there was a 13-year-old boy with whom they played a match during their meetup.
The Honey Badger noted in the caption that the youngster humbled both him and Max Verstappen yesterday since the scoreline was 6-4 and 6-1. He humorously added that he needs to head back and work on his playstyle after facing defeat from a kid.
"We got humbled yesterday. 13 years old. 6-4 and 6-1. Back to the drawing board," Ricciardo wrote.
Max Verstappen also talked about meeting Daniel Ricciardo for a game of paddle and mentioned the 13-year-old during a Team Redline livestream. He praised the youngster's skill in the sport.
"Yeah paddle was good with Daniel! We just got absolutely spanked by a 13 year old. No, but honestly he was very good. I'm not joking, he was very good. I'm not saying I'm really really good, but I'm also not really s**t," Verstappen said.
The camaraderie between the two drivers is long-standing and enduring. From 2016 to 2018, they were teammates at Red Bull, and they remained in touch even when Ricciardo left the Austrian team. They have been frequently spotted hanging out together off-track and during holidays.
Even after the Australian driver left F1 after the Singapore GP, Verstappen continues to meet with him.
Max Verstappen criticizes Red Bull's manner of handling Daniel Ricciardo's exit from F1
After Daniel Ricciardo's exit was confirmed by Red Bull, the team's star driver Max Verstappen came out in support of the Australian driver. Speaking to the media, he said that the Honey Badger could have received a much better departure from F1. He added that the team's management could have handled his exit in a better manner. He then praised Ricciardo for all he has done for the sport.
“I think it was quite clear for me, for Daniel, that that was the last race. From my side, I think it could have been handled a bit differently. Also for him, because he knew it, but he can’t say it exactly - it's a bit of a shame. He's done a lot for everyone. He's won races. He has had incredible races. I think it deserved a nicer exit,” Verstappen said.
Daniel Ricciardo was removed from RB (Racing Bulls) and was replaced by Red Bull's reserve driver, Liam Lawson. As of now, Ricciardo has not announced any future plans about returning to racing.