Daniel Ricciardo has written off 2015 and called on Red Bull and Renault to focus their attention on producing a front-running car next year instead.
The Australian was the only non-Mercedes driver to stand atop the podium last year, taking three victories in his first year with the senior squad after stepping up from Toro Rosso.
However, his second season has proved difficult, with Red Bull’s pace limited by the much-documented horsepower deficit from their Renault power unit.
“This year I think we will make some small steps, but I don’t think we are going to find 50 per cent of the power we are lacking so it is more looking towards next year,” Ricciardo said ahead of this weekend's British GP.
“The fight for the title is already out of reach so I think it is important that the team set up a championship target for next year.
“This year we haven’t made any progress on the power deficit, we thought we would at least halve it and unfortunately we are still where we were last year and Ferrari have made a step on the power side. Without going into it too much, we at least have to see some evidence and proof that we are at least going to close the gap next year and Renault is willing to do that.
“We need the commitment from them to do that and I think Red Bull deserves it. They have the ingredients to win and I think they deserve to have a package that can help them do it.”
Ricciardo’s faith in the engineering and aerodynamic work at the Milton Keynes squad is such that he is confident the RB11 could challenge Mercedes' supremacy with a stronger engine.
“I think we are in the ballpark if we had a competitive engine,” he added.
“Mercedes, beside the power, have a very good car, so if we would be faster than them I don’t know. But I think we would be close and close enough to put a bit of pressure on as Ferrari did in Malaysia and push them to maybe make a strategic mistake. We’d be in the ballpark and then if it is a few tenths here and there you can find them.”
Ricciardo partnered Sebastian Vettel in 2014 and has been linked with a reunion at Ferrari in place of Kimi Raikkonen - a prospect he isn't completely ruling out.
“I won’t go into too much detail, but first and foremost, not talking about contracts, but what I want is to win and I guess that is a lot of my frustration this year as we are not in a position to win,” he said.
“Obviously with contracts it is not as easy as saying ‘I’ll go to Ferrari and that is that’, there are things in place and from my understanding of contracts it is not likely that I can get out. But at the same time I really feel that Red Bull can make a change for next year and can get back up the front. We have the people in the team and the ingredients to do it, it is just making that next step.
“On the Ferrari thing it is nice to be recognised by a team like that, I guess I’ll take it as a compliment and see what happens. I’ll never rule anything out completely as I don’t have experience with contracts, but anything can change and you never know what is going to happen, but it is unlikely.”
Instead of fretting anxiously about his future, Ricciardo is focussing on the upcoming British GP and he is predicting a stronger performance at Silverstone after a useful test in Austria.
“I think we learnt a bit from the test with the changes we made and I think we’ve understood a few more things about the car which could help us on certain circuits,” he revealed. “We are not talking about finding a second, but little things that can help us for the rest of the year.
“We’re coming here with some pretty nice looking updates this weekend, I’m not saying they are going to give us a second, but it should be our best car yet this year and I am excited to see how far that pushes us up the grid. I think we will get a lot closer to Williams at least and we can keep chipping away at Ferrari.”
Ricciardo finished third at Silverstone in 2014 after working his way up from eighth on the grid.
Don’t miss Sky Sports F1’s live coverage of the 2015 British GP. The race begins at 1pm on Sunday, with build-up underway from 11.30am.