Ricciardo ready for reality check as 'the nonsense stops'

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Daniel Ricciardo is ready to kick off his 2021 season with McLaren, and excited to find out the true performance level of his team's MCL35M relative to its rivals as "the nonsense stops".

The Woking-based outfit enjoyed a reasonably good pre-season test in Bahrain where it put its new Mercedes-powered package through its paces.

Ricciardo was P7 in the final pecking order at the three-day test onboard a car that turned a few heads thanks to McLaren's creative approach to the rear diffuser of its MCL35M.

"The nonsense stops and this weekend is the first sign to really see where I am, where the team is and where everyone else is," Ricciardo told the media at Sakhir on Thursday.

"Obviously it's a new team for me, a new environment, but I feel comfortable and feel like we got up to speed pretty well, I'm ready to get down to it now.

"As far as pre-season testing goes, for us as a team, it's been one of the better ones and hopefully that can be something more meaningful as we get into race one and throughout the season.

"Inside we want to be hopeful, we had a good pre-season test. We were focusing on the things we wanted to focus on, we didn't do any of those glory ones."

Read also: Late breaker Ricciardo still seeking 'the limit' with McLaren

Although pundits are forecasting a strong display by McLaren in this weekend's season opening round, Ricciardo insisted on downplaying the expectations.

"I don't think we're looking amazing, maybe we are," said the Aussie. "We're just focusing on on ourselves at the moment and doing the best job we can.

"We have to wait till we get to qualifying to honestly see. We have a bit of an idea and I think everyone has a decent enough idea of what the order is going to be like."

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.