Rosberg optimistic for Shanghai

On the back of strong showings in the first two races of the year, Rosberg is bullish that the FW31 has the strengths to challenge near the front at all types of track.

This is in contrast to last year, where the team's 2008 contender proved quick on some tracks but underperformed at other venues - like Shanghai.

"Shanghai's a driver's track," said Rosberg, who led the early stages of the Malaysian GP. "There's a great mix of corners and then there are those two long straights so plenty of overtaking opportunities around the lap which will be good for the racing.

"Sepang showed that the team seem to have fixed the problem we had last year on these types of circuits so it's now looking like we have consistency. I'm confident that we'll have another competitive weekend in China. Top eight for sure."

Rosberg's optimism has been echoed by team-mate Kazuki Nakajima, who is now in his second season of F1.

"Shanghai is definitely a challenging circuit, but at least I've now had some experience of it so it's not new for me anymore," said the Japanese. "Last year, we struggled on tracks like China, but now our car is looking quite strong.

"It's well balanced in the high and low speed corners so I'm hoping we'll go much better there this year and I can score my first points of the season."