Homesickness to Australia made for tough times for Ricciardo

The start of the season with his new employer McLaren was not exactly easy for Daniel Ricciardo. Teammate Lando Norris clearly outperformed the experienced Australian and the smiling Ricciardo had a tough time, but not only because of his disappointing performance.

Ricciardo suffered from homesickness

In an interview with Motorsport.com Ricciardo admits that he has been very homesick this season. The Australian was unable to visit his friends and family in Australia due to quarantine regulations, which meant, among other things, that he had not seen his parents since June 2020. According to the winner of the 2021 Italian Grand Prix, this is the first time he has suffered from homesickness.

Under normal circumstances, Ricciardo regularly had his parents fly over, but even that is not possible now due to coronavirus measures. A frustrating time for Ricciardo, stating that this aspect of Formula 1 is often forgotten. Working in Formula 1 you are always travelling a lot and missing your loved ones.

No excuses for poor performance

Riccardo does not want to use his homesickness as an excuse for his disappointing results at the beginning of the season. It is not that it affects him directly while driving, but when things are tough - as they were at the beginning of the season - it certainly affects his mood. And according to the McLaren driver, you need to be in a good state of mind to perform well.

If Ricciardo did have his family around this season, he would have felt a lot better and been able to deal with setbacks better. Without the support and love of your family, hi could also often feel lonely. Fortunately for the eight-time Grand Prix winner, he is off to Australia over the winter break, although he had to stare at the ceiling of a quarantine hotel for two weeks to be allowed into the country. No doubt it will be worth it.