Returning to his homeland in Australia for the first time since early 2020, Daniel Ricciardo will spend Christmas in quarantine.

With Australia imposing some of the strictest COVID restrictions in the world, Daniel Ricciardo has revealed that after taking part in the post-Abu Dhabi test he will face two weeks in quarantine on returning to his homeland.

"I chose not to last year, because I didn't think it was going to be worth the time," the Australian told reporters when asked if he was taking Chris Rea's advice and heading home for Christmas. "Obviously, I had to get back to Europe with McLaren fairly early to start work, so I chose not to.

"This year I'm definitely going to go home," he added. "I need to get home, but it is difficult to get back. Unfortunately, they are not making it easy, but it is what it is. I will do that.

"I need to get home and see the family and friends. So once I get out of the four walls I should still get hopefully three or four weeks with friends and family. And that is summer so I'm looking forward to it."

According to Speedcafe.com, Ricciardo will face 3 COVID tests, the first on arrival, then again after five and thirteen days respectively. Even after leaving quarantine there will be further tests on days 17 and 21.

"I recently spoke with Ariel Helwani," he said, referring to the MMA journalist. "He went through the same. He went 18 months without seeing his folks, and by the sounds of it, he also has a very similar relationship with his parents. He said it kind of filled him with some energy when he got that first hug, and I'm definitely looking forward to that.

"Sorry to call Mum out," he grinned, "but I know she'll be flooded with tears. I think it's definitely going to be a nice moment.

"Whether we admit it or not, I'm a mama's boy and sometimes you just need a cuddle from Mum. That stuff has been hard this year."

As for next week's test, he said: "It definitely helps give the team some kind of valuable information and feedback. Us drivers will learn a bit, but a lot of it is data-driven.

"It will give some feedback which will contribute, but a lot of it is for the engineers and aerodynamicists to see the effect of the bigger wheels and how that affects aero as well. That is probably an important one."

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READERS COMMENTS

1. Posted by Max Noble, 10/12/2021 11:57

"@Pawsche - and 90% of the 50% that were convicts aspired to be prison officers… and here we are… they all made it… ;-)"

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2. Posted by Pawsche, 10/12/2021 11:44

"It used to be jokingly said that "the problem with Australia is not so much that 50% of the population are descended from convicts, but that the other 50% are descended from prison officers."... The "officer" faction seems to be strongly in the ascendant at the moment! However, I hope that Mr Ricciardo enjoys his stay in "Stalag Oz" once he's out of quarantine. :-)"

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3. Posted by Max Noble, 10/12/2021 9:06

"Frustrating, but good to see the rules applied evenly, even if they are irksome… The joke in Western Australia is that “WA” actually stands for “Wait Awhile”… which in this case is precisely what poor Danny Ric has to do…"

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4. Posted by Simon in Adelaide, 10/12/2021 1:08

"My wife and I will be travelling from South Australia to the UK to spend Christmas with our kids and 14 month old grand-daughter returning in mid January by which time the current round of hysteria should have subsided.

SA is not far behind WA (Daniel's home State) in media induced panic in the state's health system but our Premier is starting to show signs of leadership rather than hiding behind "health advice".

At this stage we should be able to do 7 or 14 days isolation at home rather than a medi-hotel (aka germ ridden cess pit) at a cost of $3000 per adult.

Good luck Danny and don't let the b@sterds grind you down."

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5. Posted by kenji, 09/12/2021 23:39

"Having had some of my family spend ridiculous times in quarantine I can sympathise with Danny's predicament. Surely he could be 'safely' transported to his farm and some 14 days of fresh air. "

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6. Posted by Bill Hopgood, 09/12/2021 17:49

"Daniel Ricciardo looks to be going through the same ridiculous situation that New Zealand's returning citizens are going through though there has been two recent successful court cases allowing the returnees to stay at home and isolate once they have returned via private jet.
Most frustrating for the likes of Liam Lawson, Courtney Duncan, Marcus Armstrong, Shane Van Gisbergen and Emma Gilmore is that in order for them to have competed this past year they have had to be tested multiple times a week and be fully vaccinated. Lawson and Duncan have managed to get spots but will miss Christmas day with their families as they stay in hotels awaiting clearance.
Despite this, they are still stuck in the "voucher" system where there is up to 30K people trying to get a spot in managed isolation and quarantine (MIQ).
The New Zealand passport will get a traveller into any country, except NZ.
The decisions on how long someone should isolate should be based on their risk of bringing COVID into the country, not a one size fits all.
I have every sympathy for Daniel Ricciardo and other folks trying to get home for Christmas and see their families after being away for so long."

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Ricciardo to spend Christmas in quarantine

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