Daniel Ricciardo has said that it should be no great surprise that Red Bull are having to fight back in 2017.

Many paddock insiders are shocked that, with a big rule change and Adrian Newey at the design table, Red Bull are over a second per lap off Mercedes and Ferrari's pace.

However, Italy's Autosprint quotes Ricciardo as questioning whether the 'Newey equals success' equation is fair.

"Adrian Newey is certainly a great name, but Ferrari, Mercedes, the top teams all have great departments too," he said in Bahrain.

Ricciardo said that Red Bull have plenty of catching up to do, but backed the team to be able to strongly develop the 2017 car.

"We have a great capacity for development and it's in that area that we were particularly good last year," he added.

Red Bull are third in the constructors' standings ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix.