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Daniel Ricciardo: Is it really worth putting my family under the stress?

Daniel Ricciardo: "Is it really worth putting my family under the stress?"

05-09-2019 18:46
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Daniel Ricciardo really struggled to deal with Anthoine Hubert's death during the Belgian Grand Prix weekend and is still coming to terms with the tragic loss. Ricciardo has been made to think about how dangerous the sport is and the stress he puts his family under every time he steps into a car.  

"I certainly questioned it," Ricciardo said to BBC Sport. "The reality is, weirdly, I do love it too much. Racing did feel right in the end. Even though I didn't really want to, once I did it, it was like, OK, this actually feels right and normal."

The whole motor-racing community was struck by the tragic loss. 

"When you're a kid and you see it on TV, and you're not present or not part of it," Ricciardo said. "It still seems like there is some form of distance or disconnection to what's happened.

"But when you're there and it happens to one of your colleagues, or it's in the same race, it seems more real, and it's like: 'OK, this actually can happen to anyone, and it's here, it's present right now.'

"The realization of us not being invincible does set in. I know my parents stress enough for me already - you know, watching me race and travel the world and being on a plane every few days. You just question it: is it really worth putting not only myself but family under the same amount of stress?"

Racing is dangerous. Every single driver must be given respect for stepping into the car. The sport will try and become safer to try and limit further the chances of these tragedies.