Mercedes boss Toto Wolff says the close nature of the 2018 title fight means predictions are “meaningless” but is wary that Singapore presents a stern challenge.
Mercedes dominated Formula 1 between 2014 and 2016 but missed out on victory amid struggles in 2015, and a year later Nico Rosberg only narrowly fended off Daniel Ricciardo.
Mercedes was firmly third-best 12 months ago but Lewis Hamilton claimed an unexpected win in the wake of the dramatic first-lap clash that eliminated both Ferraris and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
"The result in Italy was a great reward for everyone in the team who has been working tirelessly to improve our performance,” said Wolff.
“However, we also know that we've been strong at Monza in recent years and the track characteristics make the Italian Grand Prix a bit of an outlier.
“Singapore, on the other hand, has features that we've struggled with in the past.
“The short straights, the slow, tight corners and the bumpy surface all make the Marina Bay Street Circuit one of the trickiest tracks of the season for us.
“In 2015, we endured one of our most painful experiences in recent years there. Last year, we started the race from the third row – and came home with a win and a third place.
“On paper, the track should favour the Ferraris, but the championship fight is so close that predictions are almost meaningless.”
Mercedes' mixed Singapore outings
Mercedes’ dominance of Formula 1 in the early years of the hybrid era is such that Singapore is one of only three venues on the current calendar at which the marque has failed to take a 1-2 finish.
The others are Azerbaijan, which only joined the roster last year, and France, which returned to the schedule this season.
Only in 2014 have they exerted an element of control over the event – and even then Nico Rosberg’s hopes were over from the start due to a steering wheel wiring loom failure pre-race. Lewis Hamilton duly controlled proceedings with his team-mate absent.
A year later the paddock was stunned when Mercedes’ W06 simply lacked pace. The car that had topped every qualifying session and won 10 of the 12 Grands Prix was quick enough only for the third row of the grid. Rosberg came home a low-key fourth, while Hamilton retired due to a power unit problem, his only failure to finish in 2015, as Sebastian Vettel dominated for Ferrari.
Mercedes was back on form in 2016 – or at least Rosberg was. He took pole and went on to win, though divergent strategies meant he only narrowly fended off a spirited late charge by Daniel Ricciardo, the pair split by a mere half a second after 61 laps of racing. Hamilton, meanwhile, was an off-colour third.
Last season Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas qualified a subdued fifth and sixth but the rainfall pre-race proved decisive as the Ferrari drivers and Verstappen collided off the line. Hamilton, having also passed Ricciardo off the line, was able to ease away from the Red Bull driver to chalk up a remarkable win, while Bottas took third.
