Stoneman sure Ricciardo is beatable

Stoneman has chosen a full season in FR3.5 for his next move after sampling the World Series by Renault category with an outing in its season finale last October.

His 2011 team-mate Ricciardo starts the year as a strong title favourite, the Toro Rosso Formula 1 test driver having only narrowly missed out on the FR3.5 championship in his rookie campaign last season.

But Stoneman is confident he can match Ricciardo's pace.

"There will be no team orders, it's going to be fair between me and Daniel," said Stoneman on stage at AUTOSPORT International.

"It's going to be tough because it's his second season in the championship. I'm going into my first season but there's no reason why I can't go out there, give him a run for his money and go for the title."

The 20-year-old Briton said his one-off FR3.5 appearance with Junior Lotus at Catalunya this year, where he finished 14th in race two, had convinced him that it was the right choice for his next step.

"I did a race in World Series last year, and after that we had a deal on the table that we couldn't say no to," said Stoneman.

"It's a very good car, it has carbon brakes, a lot of downforce. And I did quite well considering the amount of time I had in the car."