Verstappen is first team-mate to challenge me - Ricciardo

Daniel Ricciardo has claimed that Max Verstappen is the first team-mate he has had who has the necessary ability to challenge him and that both drivers have raised their game since last season, ready to take advantage of any mistakes the other makes.

The Australian has five Grand Prix victories to his name, while the much younger Verstappen has three. The duo appear to get on well off the track and their partnership with Red Bull remains one of the most exciting on the grid.

In the past, Ricciardo has partnered Sebastian Vettel, Daniil Kvyat, Jean-Eric Vergne, Narain Karthikeyan and Vitantonio Liuzzi, but insists that Verstappen is the biggest challenger to him.

"I'm not saying I've had it easy in the past, but I think he's the first driver who can challenge me," Ricciardo told Motorsport.com.

"In the past, if I've done a high-speed corner and I've taken it flat-out for example, I've never had someone who can get there the same way.

"Max would at least go out there and try it. He's been able to match stuff easier than some other guys have."

In the two years that Ricciardo and Verstappen have driven together, the former has emerged on top in the driver rankings, but Ricciardo believes that the Dutchman is closing the gap.

"If we were to split the races, we both had an even amount of good races," he said. "His good days probably looked better because they weren't good days for me."

"I know if I make a little mistake in the past, maybe I could end up ahead still in qualifying.Now, if I make a mistake, he's in front. It's the same if he doesn't quite put a perfect lap together, I'm in front. This is why I would say he's the better teammate.

"We've both raised our game. We can't afford to put a wheel wrong because we're going to get beaten."