- Second Barcelona Test - Day Four
Ricciardo expects tight three-way fight behind Mercedes
Daniel Ricciardo expects to see Williams and Ferrari battling with Red Bull for a spot on the Melbourne podium after a mixed winter of testing.
Red Bull has struggled slightly with its Renault power unit this winter, though nowhere near as much as it did in 2014. Ferrari seems to have made a step forward while Williams looks like it has built on its breakthrough season last year but Ricciardo thinks Red Bull will be in the mix - albeit with world champions Mercedes still out in front.
"It's hard to say," Ricciardo said about the pecking order. "I think Mercedes are the ones in front and then I think it's pretty close between Williams, Ferrari and us at the moment. We'll see in Melbourne."
Ricciardo clocked 72 laps on the final day at the Circuit de Catalunya but he was delayed by an ERS issue in the morning. He managed to get out again in the afternoon and says Red Bull was satisfied with what it accomplished considering its early problems.
"We had an ERS problem in the morning but in the end we still did more or less what we needed to do. We had a few more extra runs in there today which were just if we had the time. We still did a bit on the lower fuel, performance style, and some longer runs as well so I think it was OK. The good news is we're going to Melbourne next!"
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