With pre-season testing leaving a number of questions still unanswered, it is hoped that the true order of things will be a little clearer by the end of the coming weekend.

As his team prepares to make up for the bitter disappointment of Abu Dhabi 2010, Ferrari team boss Stefano Domenicali admits that excitement is building within the team.

"As usual when you start a new challenge, a new season there is always the feeling that it is all about the enthusiasm that everyone at Maranello feels about going racing again, because after all, that is what Ferrari is all about, that is what we are all here for," he says.

"The atmosphere in the team is good and everyone is keen to get to work in Melbourne, to see where we are compared to the other teams," he continues. "So far, we have done a lot of testing through four test sessions in Spain in February and early March but this will be the chance to see where our base line puts us. There were fifteen days of winter testing in total. I am by nature very cautious so in assessing how we went during these days, I have to take into account how we worked through our programme, as well as looking at what the other teams did and because we do not know exactly what the others were doing in testing, I have to remain cautious in rating our own work.

"On the technical side, the arrival of Pirelli as sole tyre supplier is very important and it will be fundamental to continue getting a good understanding of how the tyres work, in order to use them in the best possible way," admits the Italian. "From what we have seen in winter testing, these tyres are very different to those we used in the past. Therefore, we have to adopt a fresh approach and clearly, from what we have seen so far, the number of pit stops required to complete a race distance competitively will be higher than before. This is significant in terms of teamwork at the races, because more pit stops means the role of team members becomes even more important in terms of deciding the final outcome of the races.

"A further impact of having more pit stops is that possibly qualifying and therefore grid position will be less important than in 2010. In simple terms it is more likely that a car that has not set the fastest time and taken pole position can still go on to win the race. It will be absolutely vital to have the right strategy in order to win the race."