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There is an enormous part of me that wonders just how much the modern era of car has dulled the effectiveness of the racer we once knew as Daniel Ricciardo.
He’s never been the same man behind the wheel since the new regulations came in, just as the man we view as potentially the greatest of all time, Sir Lewis Hamilton, has at times looked a shadow of the all-conquering racer of old.
READ MORE: From famous quotes to an iconic Secret Santa – The funniest Ricciardo moments that endeared him to F1 fans
And if that win at Silverstone and Hamilton’s emotional reaction to it evidenced the hardships he had experienced, the questions he had raised about his own abilities and the need for validation which he, and his legendary status, required, I spare a huge thought for what these few years have done for Daniel and how much they have made him question the craft and diminish the confidence which used to come so naturally.
In today’s era, Formula 1, perhaps more than at any time in history, exists in the midst of the cult of personality. For Daniel, as the results failed to come and the questions started to fly, the brand he had created for himself of the ever happy, lovable joker was perhaps the one thing he had left.
But when even his smile started to wane, and as the realities of just how difficult this new spell was proving to be set in, there was less and less opportunity to be the goofball.
The hardships that existed behind the scenes, the toll that his new reality was taking on him and had done now for years, became too clear to ignore.
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