Over the past few months, I've found myself thinking about legacy.
That's what getting older means to people. As children grow up and parents grow older, one day they may look in the mirror and no longer notice the person staring back at them. Gone are young college freshmen and even new professionals ready to take on the world. Instead, staring back at you is a middle-aged man with more wrinkles than he'd like, more gray hair than he'd like to admit, and a man who's wondering what he's leaving behind.
Death can happen to anyone, but athletes face two possible outcomes. One thing we all have in common at the end of this journey we call life is the end of our time in the sport, the end of the sport we have loved since the moment we first experienced it. It's time. . Few, if any, athletes experience that outcome in the best possible way. Very few people are able to reach the top at the pinnacle of their sport.
For most people, the end is more painful and is when they begin to realize or finally accept that their time has passed.
In my case, the official end to my football career came on a Saturday in November, the day of my final college football game in Middletown, Connecticut. But in reality, the end had come long before that. His body, bruised and bruised from more than a decade of playing games, no longer responds as he should, and his shoulders, worn out from thousands, if not millions of passes, are shredded inside. , there was no more juice.
And my spot on the depth chart was taken by another young college freshman who would happily take my place.
In that moment, you also wonder what your sporting legacy will be as you try to stave off the inevitable end you know is coming.
Today, the Red Bull organization announced that changes are coming to the Visa Cash App RB F1 team. Liam Lawson drives alongside Hiroki Tsunoda.
Daniel Ricciardo leaves behind a career filled with race victories, memorable moments and perhaps even more.
An even greater legacy.
So much has been written and so much said about the growing popularity of F1, especially in the United States. Inevitably, Arrow returns to Netflix's documentary series drive to survive The series took fans old and new behind the scenes into previously untouched worlds. Old fans were given a deeper glimpse into the strategy and intrigue behind the pit walls, while new fans were introduced to the personalities, exotic locations and glamor of one of the fastest sports in the world.
first season drive to survivewhat took it from a Netflix curiosity to a global phenomenon? The main part focused on Ricciardo, the end of his days at Red Bull and his shock decision to leave the team and join Renault ahead of the 2019 season. His trademark smile and huge personality powered his first season, setting the stage for the show's popularity and the growth of the sport.
That fateful decision may have been the moment when Ricciardo's racing legacy changed direction in terms of success on the track. He left behind a burgeoning team and seven Grand Prix wins and bet on Renault. But after two seasons and just two podiums with Renault, Ricciardo was on the move again, this time to McLaren.
Ricciardo won the 2021 Italian Grand Prix and enjoyed one more climb to the top step of the podium at Papaya, but it appeared to be his last day in the sun and his last podium in F1. is.
There may still be racing days left in Ricciardo's future. His popularity around the world, especially in the United States, could open the door to a move to IndyCar or even NASCAR, and one would think that fans, and the sport itself, would welcome him with open arms. Last season, I also tried my hand at commentary. Daniel Ricciardo and Will Arnett grandstandhis personality and personality can translate perfectly to his work in front of the camera.
Or, as former teammate Max Verstappen said ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix, he could return to Australia and live on a farm.
Whatever Ricciardo does next, he will leave behind a racing legacy full of glorious moments in the sun and a racing legacy that puts him in the racing class of F1 drivers: a multiple race winner . He has gone down as one of the most daring brakers in the sport, willing to give it his all in any given corner.
But there's more to his story and his legacy than those accomplishments. He was also the spark that opened the sport to millions of new fans and drove global growth through the F1 vehicle. Drive to survive. He helped bring the sport to a new generation of fans and helped fuel the growth of F1 in places like the US, where it now features the world's best drivers in three races per season. .
He also helped birth a new generation of content creators, giving them the idea, the promise, and the hope that they, too, could be part of this fascinating world. Among them were former athletes who had left a completely different sport during their active years.
Many athletes leave the sport with a story to tell. A story of triumph, a story of accomplishment, a story of a moment in the sun.
Few people are able to transcend a sport and walk away from it after helping to make it a global phenomenon.
That too is Daniel Ricciardo's legacy.
