Daniel Ricciardo and Heidi Berger first went public with their relationship in the summer of 2022.
Ricciardo is known for his F1 driving skills, and his girlfriend comes from the same background — her father is retired Formula 1 driver Gerhard Berger. After growing up near a race track and traveling frequently, she eventually met Ricciardo.
Although the two didn’t make their relationship public until August 2022, they've reportedly been dating for much longer. Soon after they went “Instagram official,” Ricciardo shared that he was in love and that things were serious with Berger. They have since given their followers glimpses into their private lives with their shared travels, friends and family.
So, who is Daniel Ricciardo’s girlfriend? Here’s everything to know about Heidi Berger and her relationship with the F1 driver.
She has famous parents
Berger's father is former Austrian F1 driver Gerhard Berger and her mother is former Portuguese model Ana Corvo. Gerhard was on various teams in Formula 1, including ATS, Arrows, Benetton, Ferrari and McLaren before his retirement. Berger grew up around her parents’ careers, getting experience in the racing world and the modeling industry alongside her older sister, Sara.
She moved countries to pursue her passions
After Berger finished high school, she took a gap year to study theater in London. After sending a self-tape for a potential role, she made another major move to Lisbon, Portugal, to pursue acting full-time.
She told CARAS in 2016 that she was cast in the soap opera A Única Mulher. Two years later, Berger told the outlet that she moved to the United States to study at New York University. In the same interview, she also revealed that she could speak Portuguese, English and German. (Berger also grew up in Monaco, where French is spoken.)
She is an actress
Berger's first official acting role was A Única Mulher as the character of Nônô. She starred in the longstanding dramatic soap opera in 2016 and 2017.
After the show concluded, Berger then focused on a string of guest appearances on Trakehnerblut, Meiberger: Chasing Minds and Três Mulheres.
Between 2018 and 2020, Berger starred in the mystery thriller Onde Está Elisa? as Elisa Menezes.
Ricciardo and Berger went public with their relationship in August 2022
In August 2022, Ricciardo posted his first photos with Berger on his Instagram account from a trip they took with friends around California. She also posted a video on Instagram from a hike on the trip and captioned it, “Heidi got taken out of her comfort zone.”
However, it was in 2021 when rumors started that the pair were dating. According to Yahoo!, they were first seen together in New York in early 2021, and in June of that year, they were reportedly spotted taking a helicopter ride together.
Ricciardo confirmed his relationship with Berger in September 2022
Ricciardo first publicly declared that he was in love with Berger during an interview with radio show personalities Fitzy & Wippa a month after going Instagram official. He revealed that their relationship was serious after host Ryan Fitzgerald asked Ricciardo if he was in love.
“Yeah mate, I’m in love, I got a good thing going, so yeah. I’ve got a good balance in life right now,” he said.
Ricciardo then reminisced about growing up as a child and following F1. He admitted that he was a fan of his girlfriend's father and even had a Gerhard Berger hat.
“It’s funny, I talk about [racing] with him. He still goes to quite a few races,” Ricciardo said of Gerhard. “He still has an interest in the sport and he still does some business with it.”
When asked if Berger could be a professional driver, Ricciardo confirmed that she was not interested in it. “Definitely not race car status. No offense,” he concluded.
Ricciardo broke the sport’s infamous superstition with Berger
Almost every sport has its superstitions, including racing. In a candid interview with Dax Shepard on a 2022 episode of The Armchair Expert podcast, the driver revealed that he no longer practices one of the sport's superstitions: no sex before a big race.
“I used to [believe in superstition and practice it], but not anymore,” he shared. “I went against my rules obviously once and I was probably even better ... so it’s all good.” Now, he considers himself “anti-superstition.”
He noted it is “easy to have a lack of accountability if you’ve got a superstition.” Ricciardo views it as a potential excuse when something goes wrong. “I might brush off the reality of why I had a bad race because I didn’t put my sock on the right way,” he explained.
She enjoys traveling
Berger frequently posts photos of her adventures both abroad and stateside on Instagram. In April 2023, she spent her 26th birthday at Tokyo Disneyland.
Aside from her theme park vacations, she has surfed in Lahaina, Hawaii; hiked in the Alps; visited the beaches of Formentera, Spain; and enjoyed the views in Ibiza, Spain. She and Ricciardo have been able to travel together as well, including a romantic trip to Italy.