Ricciardo: A few elements I’m still getting to grips with

This is his first season using Mercedes turbo hybrid power, while the way McLaren do things and the likes of Renault and Red Bull, his two previous teams, differ vastly and the required familiarity comes with time.

The same can be said of his rivals, who like he swapped teams between last year and this season. Carlos Sainz is not fully comfortable at Ferrari alongside Leclerc; Sergio Perez coming to terms with Red Bull and being Max Verstappen's teammate; Sebastian Vettel struggling at Aston Martin; Fernando Alonso on the receiving end of a reality check at Alpine.

However, it is fair to say that Ricciardo has been more plug-and-play than the abovementioned but he there is more to come from the seven-time Grand Prix winner.

He said in the build-up to this weekend's Portuguese Grand Prix: "I want to keep building on the progress we’ve made in the first two races and put what we learned at Imola into practice.

"We’ve definitely started the season on the right foot by scoring good points for the Constructors’ Championship, so I can’t be too disappointed on that front. There are a few elements I’m still trying to get to grips with which is only going to get better with more time behind the wheel."

One thing that was pretty clear during the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix race, Ricciardo is a team player and when faced with the awkward "Felipe Fernando is faster than you call" came from the McLaren pitwall to allow teammate Lando Norris through, he did not hesitate and in fact took inspiration from his young teammate's achievement.

"Seeing Lando achieve a podium showed the potential of the car which is super motivating, We’re only three races in and there’s a lot more to come from me, so let’s keep it going," declared Ricciardo.

The season begins to get into top gear with a double-header starting with Portugal this weekend and Spain a week later.

Last year at Portimao, Ricciardo driving for Renault was firmly in the middle of the midfield all weekend, qualifying 10th and finishing the race in ninth. He will be expecting a lot more this weekend when he suits up in Orange.

Ricciardo said in the team preview: "Up next is Portimão and I’m eager to get back in the car. Racing there is a lot of fun with the track having some unique elements that you don’t see at every race on the calendar.

"There’s a good mixture of high and low-speed corners with various changes in elevation that make it an exciting challenge. Coming out of some of the turns, you can really feel your stomach drop with the steep changes in gradient," added the 31-year-old from Perth.