Mercedes confident it is on top of tyre issues heading into Monaco Grand Prix

With Nico Rosberg starting on the front row, and Michael Schumacher the quickest car in qualifying, the W03 appears to be well-suited to the tight Monaco track.

However, with memories of last year - where both drivers suffered significant tyre degradation in the race - still fresh in the team's mind, Mercedes feels it is better prepared heading into Sunday afternoon's event.

Rosberg said: "We have definitely prepared well for the race, and made several set-up things to be in better shape and take care of the tyres better than we did last year. That is why I feel much more comfortable approaching the race."

Schumacher added: "We have seen our car this year and we had some up and downs in the early part of the year until we understood how to deal with the circumstances. But now we know what is required here so it should be good."

Team principal Ross Brawn said he was optimistic the team understood the tyre situation far better than it did 12 months ago.

"There are no guarantees for sure and the whole team are aware of the possibility," he said of the potential for tyre issues. "We have improved some of the technology we use to try and judge where we are with the tyres during the race, and the drivers are far more aware of it.

"We will drive the race pace, and the pace of our cars in the race will be what we feel the tyres can handle. Whether it is quick enough we will wait and see, but we don't want the situation we had last year where, after six or eight laps, we had destroyed the rear tyres.

"We are much better at managing it, but whether we are good enough we will find out [on Sunday]. But we are in a better position than we were last year."