Mercedes Formula 1 team boss Toto Wolff says Ferrari remains “a force to be reckoned with” following its surprise charge to pole position in Singapore on Sat๊urday.

Ferrari was expected to struggle on the high downforce layout in 🌠Singapore after difficulties at similar circuits earlier in the year, only for Charles Leclerc to score his third straight pole ahead of Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton.

Leclerc’s pace was underpinned by that of teammate Sebastian Vettel, who qualified third, a further three-hundredths of a second behind Hamilton as both benefitted from a raft of updates for 😼the Ferrari SF90 car.

“I think you always need to have Ferrari on the radar. They’ve had some pretty good races at the beginning of the seasཧon and then it somehow fell apart and a strong run most recently,” Wolff said 🔯after qualifying on Saturday in Singapore.

“When we came into this weekend, I heard so many times, ‘well you are the faওvourites and it’s going to💧 be between you and Red Bull and Ferrari is going to be nowhere because their car only goes fast on the straight’.

“I always said try to🔯 be cautious about these things, and here we go. It’s maybe a bit of an extravagant track and a little bit of an outlier, and maybe they were lucky.

“But I don’t thi🦋nk so. I think Ferrari is a force to be reckoned with always.”

Mercedes appeared to have an edge over Ferrari through the long run pace in second 🔯practice on Friday night, but Wolff stressed the importꩵance of track position around the tight Singapore circuit.

ജ“Obviously if you are fast on one lap, you’ve got to have the heat in ꦰthe car and the tyres for this one lap, and it’s something that can bite you on a race distance,” Wolff said.

“Having said that, once you’re in front, y🍰ou have a decent opportunity in managing from thღere. I’d rather be on pole with a slightly compromised pole than have a great race car and not be on pole.

“I think it’s more difficult here, a little bit like Monaco, where it’s really d🥂ifficult to overtake, especially if you have a fast car on the straight – unless the pace difference is enormous. You don’t expect it.

“Nevertheless, we’re going into the race tomorrꦦow with full steam ahead and the points are be❀ing awarded tomorrow, not today.”