Ricciardo has hopes of making early statement

Daniel Ricciardo has called on Red Bull to deliver a championship-winning statement of intent at Formula One’s season-opening Australian Grand Prix, but fears Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes team will still be the sport’s leading force.

Red Bull started last season off the pace of both Mercedes and Ferrari, but ended the campaign with two victories from the last six rounds after Ricciardo’s team-mate Max Verstappen won in Malaysia and then Mexico.

Home favourite Ricciardo will head into Melbourne’s Albert Park opener hopeful that Red Bull have continued to take strides over the winter as he bids to secure his first podium finish in front of the Australian crowd.

But, speaking on the eve of this year’s first race, the 28-year-old conceded that Mercedes – the dominant constructor that have won the last four driver and team championships – are set to hold the advantage once more.

“There’s a lot more confidence within the team,” Ricciardo said. “Every year we have worked hard to build a fast car, but come testing we have not really had a lot to show for it, but this winter we had a bit more.

“I still feel like the top three teams will be Mercedes, Ferrari and us.

“I hope it’s a bit more compressed but Mercedes will probably turn up this weekend and they’ll be the ones to beat.

“For us to have a strong weekend, however, would set a statement for the year and show that we would be fighting for the championship. It would be awesome to get off on the right foot.”

Hamilton and Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel look set to go head to head in their battle to become only the third driver in F1 history – after Michael Schumacher and Juan Manuel Fangio – to win the championship more than four times.

Daniel Ricciardo: expects Mercedes to hold advantage.