Australian star Daniel Ricciardo vowed to "close the gap" in the race for Formula One championship glory and the new McLaren driver is refusing to make any excuses.

Ricciardo enters his 11th season in F1 having switched from Renault to McLaren, but the 31-year-old does not expect the transition to hold him back.

Since entering F1, Ricciardo has claimed seven grand prix victories and 31 podium finishes, while he earned fifth place in the drivers' championship during the coronavirus-hit 2020 season.

After moving to McLaren to replace new Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz Jr. and pair up with the returning Lando Norris, Ricciardo has an eye on climbing the ranks.

"What I expect out of myself in 2021 is to really hit the ground running," Ricciardo said.

"Naturally it does take some time to learn a new team, a new car, but I guess I'm going to be hard on myself, not to give myself too much time.

"I think with Renault I was the same. I really wanted to be there by Melbourne, that first race, but naturally it did take a bit of time.

"I don't want to be naive but I also want to make sure I'm just leaving no stone unturned and really by the end of year I've had a big contribution to the team, moving forward and closing the gap."

Carlos Sainz compared Ferrari and McLaren to LaLiga heavyweights Real Madrid and Barcelona, and is confident of a successful transition to the Scuderia. 

The Spaniard spent the past two seasons at McLaren, making the podium on two occasions, but is Ferrari-bound for 2021, replacing Sebastian Vettel.

Sainz spoke about how the objective for both teams is to cut the gap to dominant Mercedes, while he feels the fact he will have raced for both teams proves he is doing something right in his career.

Asked by AS if racing for Ferrari is like playing for Real Madrid, the team Sainz supports, he replied: "It's one way of saying it…but McLaren is Barca, which is also a very good team to be on. 

"It cannot be compared, because in addition both are in a restructuring to try to dethrone Mercedes in the future. 

"But they are the two best teams in history and when you go from one to the other it means that you are doing something right in Formula One."

At Ferrari, Sainz is joining a team where the pressure is always on to be a success and internal politics have historically always been a lingering presence in the background.

But Sainz is confident of being able to bring a harmonious atmosphere like the one he was part of at McLaren.

"That I managed to do it at McLaren means I can do it at Ferrari. If I could create a good team, generate good dynamics at McLaren, why not do it at Ferrari? I can do it," he added. 

"I like the people out there, I like Mattia [Binotto, Ferrari team boss] and I like what I see, what we have talked about. 

"There was no hesitation when it came to signing the contract and going forward. In my head there is no possibility that this environment and similar situation cannot be generated. 

"If I could at McLaren, I can at Ferrari."

Sainz's predecessors at Ferrari Vettel and Fernando Alonso arrived with huge reputations as two of the most gifted drivers of their generations and with world titles to their name.

Neither man was able to end Ferrari's wait for a champion dating back to 2007 but Sainz believes it is wrong to judge their success at Maranello based on titles.

"They leave with a few victories and podiums, if you call that going empty…I only have two podiums," he said. 

"Are they leaving without a championship? Yes. But the same has happened to nineteen drivers, every season for the last 10, when Red Bull or Mercedes have dominated. 

"There are nineteen drivers a year who have gone empty, but I do not include those who have raced for Ferrari. Nobody leaves Ferrari empty."

Formula One rising star Lando Norris has tested positive for COVID-19 while holidaying in Dubai.

The McLaren driver, who had a first career podium among seven top-six finishes last season, said he was largely asymptomatic but had lost his sense of taste and smell.

Norris, 21, was taking a break in the United Arab Emirates and will be confined to his hotel room for two weeks as a result.

On Tuesday, he wrote in a message posted to Twitter: "Hi everyone, hope you are all keeping well. Yesterday I lost my sense of taste and smell so immediately self isolated [sic] and took a test.

“It's come back as positive, so I've told everyone that I’ve been in contact with and will be self isolating for the next 14 days.

“I feel alright and have no other symptoms but I just wanted to let you all know. Take care.”

McLaren confirmed the positive, saying it came before Norris was due to join the team for pre-season preparations.

The team said in a statement: "McLaren can confirm that Lando Norris tested positive for COVID-19 yesterday in Dubai, where he is currently on holiday ahead of a planned training camp."

The 2021 Formula One season is scheduled to start in Australia with a March 21 race; however, reports have indicated that grand prix is likely to be pushed back until later in the year due to Melbourne's quarantine restrictions.

That would mean the campaign getting under way a week later in Bahrain, with pre-season testing switching to Bahrain from Barcelona also reported to be a possibility.