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F1 Chinese GP: Rosberg: We’ve not seen real Ferrari yet

Nico Rosberg has reiterated Mercedes' concern about the threat Ferrari poses and expects the Italian manufacturer to be a stronger challenger after its inconsistent opening two races.

The German driver has stormed to victory in Australia and Bahrain, extending his winning run to five with the three triumphs at the end of 2015, and is fully focused on continuing his fine streak at Shanghai which hosted his first Grand Prix win in 2012.

After Lewis Hamilton hit trouble in Bahrain Rosberg has stretched his early lead to 17 points and predicts his team-mate to fight back in China as well as Ferrari who is yet to show its form with both cars.

Kimi Raikkonen suffered an engine fire midway through the Australian Grand Prix while Sebastian Vettel stuttered to a halt on the warm-up lap in Bahrain with an engine issue.

"I'm going to China now knowing I can fight for the win, which is a great feeling to have. It's especially good in this instance too, as Shanghai is a track with good memories for me," Rosberg said. "I took my first pole and win there back in 2012, so I head into this weekend on a massive high. I'm looking forward to the next battle. We haven't seen the real Ferrari yet, so it could be a very exciting season ahead."

Rosberg says he's not getting over-confident due to recent results and wants to take a measured approach to the season with a marathon 19 races still left to contest, starting with the Chinese Grand Prix this weekend.

"It's great to start the season in such a positive way," he said. "But I'm just taking things step by step, race by race and targeting a lot more wins to come. It's important to enjoy times like these. I feel very privileged to drive the best car on the grid for the third year in a row and I intend to make the most of it."

Zdroj: crash.net