Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo says establishing a reliable base with the new RB13 will be key during the initial phase of pre-season testing, which gets underway in Spain in a fortnight.
Red Bull emerged as Mercedes’ primary challenger in 2016, with Ricciardo finishing third in the standings, behind only Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton, taking victory in Malaysia.
Each team is permitted only eight days of running across the two tests at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, prior to the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, and Ricciardo reckons maximising the available time will be crucial.
“The first thing you're looking for is reliability,” Ricciardo said in an interview with Red Bull’s website.
“There are so few test days available. You know track time is important for the car, for development, but it's also important for us physically.
“I know that my pre-season has been the best I've had in terms of physical preparation but it's still not driving a race car.
“I'll arrive fit and conditioned but the first day in the car is still going to hurt because your body is going through different things, things it hasn't been through in a long time.
“You want to do the laps for yourself, so that you get that race fitness.”
Ricciardo is also hopeful that he will enjoy an initially strong feeling with the Renault-powered RB13, which will be unveiled on February 26, the day before the start of testing.
“After the reliability is settled you want to go through a corner and feel it in your bottom that it's a fast car,” he said.
“Once you do one flying lap, you get an idea. It's just the way it brakes and turns – you just know. Hopefully, it's a good feeling, that first timed lap.”
