Mercedes and Renault started the year with high hopes of breaking into the top three, Mercedes having switched early to working on their 2011 car and Renault hoping a radical design coupled with momentum from a strong finish to 2010 would see them step up a level.
The black-and-gold Renaults got off to a flyer, taking two podiums in the first two races and clocking up 30 points as the silver arrows of Mercedes netted a total of just two points for Michael Schumacher's seventh place in Malaysia.
Since then, however, Renault have wobbled and Mercedes have slowly overcome them to take a 14-point advantage in the standings - but neither team is where they wanted to be, with Ferrari, who are at the back of the front-running trio, now on more than three times the points of Renault and Mercedes some 135 points behind.
