Adrian Newey more involved with 2015 Red Bull F1 car than expected

Red Bull's chief technical officer stepped back from day-to-day involvement with the team for this year, but Ricciardo stressed that Newey is still taking an active interest in helping the F1 team return to winning ways.

"I've been asked a little bit about him and how much he stepped back," Ricciardo told the media in the Melbourne paddock on Thursday.

"I don't want to put him in the spotlight, but he was at all the tests and he's here this weekend.

"It looks like he's already done more than he initially thought he would, so I think he is still very much interested in the RB11.

"From what I can see, the team wants to get back on top. It was an off year by their standards last year and we're not too keen to let Mercedes get any further away."

Ricciardo is anticipating Red Bull being in the thick of a close fight for best of the rest behind Mercedes this weekend.

This is despite Red Bull's form during pre-season testing being inconclusive and Williams and Ferrari potentially looking stronger.

"It does look like the Mercs have a bit of pace again this year, but for that last spot on the podium it looks pretty close between us, Ferrari, and Williams and I'm sure there will be a few other players coming into the mix," he said.

"We will see everyone on track like-for-like this weekend and that's what's exciting.

"We've been asked so many questions, where do you think you stand, but testing doesn't really show everything.

"What it did show this year is that the Mercs are quick, but other than that it's pretty close behind them."

The three-time grand prix winner added that he feels in a much stronger position coming into his second season with a top team.

"With myself, I feel I've come a long way," he said. "I've evolved as a driver and I have a bigger impact in the team, having spent 12 months there.

"If you look back at last year, we are in a better position [now].

"We're coming here with more confidence in reliability, and now we're preparing for the race.

"I don't think we've showed [our pace] in testing - it is all there on the table ready for us to use."