The former race winner of the ADAC GT Masters, Ricky Collard, has surprisingly announced the end of his career. In 2017, as a BMW Junior, Collard won the second race at the season opener in Oschersleben in a Schnitzer M6 together with Philipp Eng. However, he only drove three weekends before Nick Catsburg contested the rest of the season.
“I’ve achieved a lot in my career, but I’m happy with my life outside of motorsport,” he told our sister portal Autosport. “I’m very grateful to have been able to live this lifestyle. I’ve raced against some of the best in karting, British Formula 3 and GT racing.”
He talks about his promising junior career: in 2015 he finished second in the British Formula 4 Championship behind current McLaren Formula 1 driver Lando Norris. He beat today’s IndyCar star Colton Herta, among others. A year later he finished second in the British Formula 3 Championship before BMW took him.
The ADAC GT Masters 2017 was promising, in addition to the win, Collard and Eng also clinched another podium at the Red Bull Ring and two fifth places. And that in one of the toughest years ever in the German GT Championship. But after leaving Schnitzer, Collard’s career went downhill steeply.
In 2018 he replaced his father Rob Collard on a BMW 125i in the British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) when he was sidelined due to health issues. Back then, Collard managed a third place at Silverstone. After that he was only used sporadically in the GT area.
In the 2022 season, he attempted another full season in the BTCC in a Toyota GR Corolla, but had to drive a front-wheel drive for the first time in his career. He finished 16th in the championship with a fourth place finish at Snetterton as a personal best.
“I had a lot of fun but now I want to find myself outside of motorsport. I have a one-way ticket to Australia and a family,” he says. “There’s a lot more to life than racing cars. A lot of my friends have supported me and sacrificed their weekends for me. One of them is now a DJ. I’d like to help him now.”
Collard’s retirement was a little lost in the BTCC finals. While Tom Ingram celebrated his first championship, British touring car racing said goodbye to its legend Jason Plato, who clinched a total of 97 victories in over 600 races between 1997 and 2022.