Rosberg: We haven't seen the true Ferrari yet

Despite the clear pace shown by the Maranello outfit, a wrong strategy call in Australia allied to reliability woes for Sebastian Vettel and a poor start for Kimi Raikkonen in Bahrain has derailed its bid for victories.

But while that has opened the door for Nico Rosberg to grab wins in Australia and Bahrain, the German does not believe that F1 has seen the true state of play between the two teams.

For however much he was controlling the pace at the front of the field at Sakhir after his rivals had effectively wrecked their afternoons on the first lap, he thinks Ferrari has much more in hand.

"I was in control," he said. "We were just managing the race, trying to reduce risks, strategy wise, pitstop wise, and bring the race home.

"But at same time, Kimi showed good pace in the race. We know that Ferrari are super close, and we need to keep pushing.

"They haven't shown what they are able to do yet, that is clear. They have had so many mishaps which has cost them dearly, so we haven't seen the real Ferrari yet. We need to be careful, they are coming at us strong."

Living the moment

Rosberg's Bahrain victory has put him in control of the F1 championship, with a 17-points advantage over team-mate Lewis Hamilton already.

But although it is a world away from his slow start to last season, Rosberg knows there is no point getting too carried away with his situation.

"I am not thinking about the season. I am going step-by-step," he said. "I am just enjoying it at the moment.

"I have been very privileged to drive this car and go for wins. When I go to China, I know I am going to fight for the win there as well, so it is such a great feeling to have.

"Winning is awesome, celebrating with the team, and getting all those points. It is great to start the season like that. But I am not looking too far ahead, I am living for the moment."