Unchained Melody (Daniel Ricciardo)

Video message.

"So shall we record the video?" Ayla asks after the two have come back to their cabana.
Daniel sighs and nods.
"Might as well get it over with. I do want to tell Seb first before we post it though."

"Yeah of course, you can post it tomorrow. Zak can wait. I bet he's desperate for you to make the announcement so they can let the world know they have signed Oscar. But he will just have to wait a bit longer."
Ayla pulls a face of disgust. She will never be able to look at Zak again without giving him a look that would kill him. If looks had that power.

She starts to set things up. She will put the phone in a tripod to keep it steady, Daniel will sit in front of the window so the beautiful view will be behind him.
Daniel has already practiced what he is going to say, he didn't write it down, but he knows what and how he will say it. He wants to keep it short, but he also wants to make it very clear that it wasn't a mutual decision, but that he accepts it and has his eyes set on the future.

He wants to come across as positive and strong, even though he hasn't exactly felt like that at first. He still doesn't, but hopefully he'll get there at some point. For now he will just have to put on a brave face and act like he's fine. Which he is, but he is still hurt and disappointed with how things have gone.

Ayla puts his phone in the tripod and checks to make sure the camera isn't blurry or focused on anything else but Daniel.
She looks at him over the top of the phone and smiles encouraging.

"You got this babe." She tells him and somehow those words give him the strength to sit up straight and look straight into the camera.
Ayla quickly rushes over to him and fiddles with his hair a bit, trying to tame some of his curls.
Then she gives him a soft, warm kiss before going back to the phone.

"Alright, whenever you're ready." She says and presses record.
She will edit the video later before Daniel will post it. So it won't matter if it doesn't go right in one take.

"Hi everybody. Daniel here. I don't do this often, but there's something I feel you need to hear from me. Obviously my move to McLaren hasn't been a smooth ride so far. I've struggled getting the car and myself in sync, I haven't been able to get the results, me and the team were hoping for. It hasn't been for my lack of trying and fighting to get there, somehow the car and I just don't gel."
He pauses for a second, trying to find the right words for the next part of his message to his fans.

"We're all aware of the rumors, I've heard them and everybody around me has as well. It's tough to read all those things that have been said about me and I want everybody to realize that I am still a human being with actual feelings. Reading nasty comments about yourself is very painful and it can destroy your confidence.

I can honestly say it damaged mine. Luckily I have an amazing family who supports me, great friend who have my back and the best girlfriend anybody can wish for."

He smiles at Ayla who starts to blush. This was not what he practiced, this comes straight from his heart, but she feels it's important that he lets the world know how hurtful their words can be.

"Recently I had a call from the team, letting me know they decided they didn't want to move forward with me as their driver. It came as a surprise, but I also kinda expected it. Of course I had hopes for more time to show my abilities, but I also get why they made this choice.

As of next season, I won't be driving for McLaren anymore. Another talented driver will take my place and I will move on and hopefully find another opportunity on the grid. I do realize there's not a lot of options, but I have an amazing team around me who will try to help me find the best place for me.