After Ferrari’s win last race, Mercedes will now be feeling the pressure. Whether Ferrari will be able to challenge Mercedes again this weekend is a question we will soon be able to answer. They believe the win was not just down to the heat and they say that the performance of their car has improved significantly. Both Mercedes drivers welcome the competition and we hope to see an exciting, season-long battle between the two teams. However, was it just a one-off win for Ferrari?
Mercedes
After dominating the Australian grand prix, Mercedes were confident of another easy victory. However, they were beaten by Ferrari and are worried it may happen again. Technical director, Paddy Lowe, says : “We have a range of new aerodynamic developments for Shanghai and are targeting an improved performance from Malaysia.”
They are clearly feeling the challenge and pressure from Ferrari and are hoping to keep them behind during the race. The two drivers are excited about the competition and will hope to have some great battles with the two Ferrari drivers.
Ferrari
Winning in Malaysia came as as shock to Ferrari and will put them in a good position going into this weekend. Although the win was in hot conditions and Mercedes did struggle with the heat, Ferrari are still confident they could challenge them even in the cooler conditions in China. They are expecting Mercedes to be strong this weekend, but will hope to challenge them in the race.
Williams
Finishing the race in 5th and 6th was disappointing to Williams and they will be hoping they can close the gap to Ferrari and Mercedes. The car has very low-drag, which is ideal for the Shanghai circuit with the long back straight. Hopefully, they will be able to improve their performance this weekend and they will hope to challenge for a podium finish.
Red Bull
Both drivers struggled in Sepang and the team are behind Toro Rosso currently in the championship. It shows us that they are not just facing issues regarding the power unit and that they will need to improve in many areas in order to challenge for victories this season.
Toro Rosso
A great start to the season for the two rookie drivers and Max Verstappen became the youngest ever points scorer in F1 after finishing 7th in Malaysia. Both drivers have impressed in the opening races, demonstrating great skill and beating the Red Bull team. Neither driver has raced in Shanghai before, so it will be a new challenge for Toro Rosso’s young drivers.
McLaren
Despite neither car finishing in Malaysia, McLaren are confident that they have made some significant improvements ahead of the race this weekend. They hope to see both drivers finish and this will be helped by the cooler conditions in China.
Force India
The team have struggled in the opening races this season and were hoping to make a major update very soon. However, they are going to have to wait until at least the 7th race of the year until this happens. They are not expecting great things for the race, but would love to challenge for points on Sunday.
Sauber
A great opening race in Melbourne was followed by a disappointing one in Sepang. Ericsson made a mistake early in the race, which resulted in him retiring, and Nasr had contact with Raikkonen which compromised his race. The drivers will be hoping not to let that happen again this weekend and instead finish in the points. The team have proved they have a great car and will be hoping to be able to challenge for strong positions in the race.
Manor
Roberto Merhi finishing the Malaysian grand prix was a great result for the team who have struggled to make it onto the grid this year. Will Stevens was unable to start, due to an issue with his car:
“To miss qualifying and the race was disappointing, but then we came into this year knowing the first few races would be difficult.”
However, the team are hoping that both drivers will be able to race this weekend. The goal for this race is to see both drivers finish on Sunday.
Lotus
The opening rounds of the season have been frustrating for Lotus. The car is obviously much stronger than the car last year but reliability issues, as well as collisions which were not necessarily their fault, have prevented them finishing in the points so far this year. They are hoping to have a better weekend in China and know they could challenge for points finishes in the race.