Are Ferrari for real; can Nico Rosberg step it up and the questions for the Chinese GP

Ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix, the big questions around F1 circle Sebastian Vettel's and Ferrari's actual viability for a Mercedes challenge and whether Nico Rosberg can finally be competitive with his teammate.

Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari trails Lewis Hamilton by just three points in the F1 drivers' standings after winning the Malaysian Grand Prix. Quique Garcia / AFP

A look at five talking points for the Formula One Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai this weekend:

Are Ferrari really back?

Sebastian Vettel injected a bit of chaos into the F1 season with his stunning victory in Malaysia, his first for Ferrari and first since topping the podium for Red Bull Racing at the end of 2013. But after ending a run of eight straight victories for Mercedes stretching back to last season, Shanghai should prove the acid test for Ferrari's hopes of launching any sort of genuine challenge. Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff insists there's no need to panic, but the way Lewis Hamilton's circuitry fried under pressure from Vettel suggested the German had struck a significant psychological blow.

Rosberg needs form, fast

It hasn't been a happy 2015 so far for Nico Rosberg, who was comprehensively beaten by Mercedes teammate Hamilton in Australia and left red-faced in Malaysia. Rosberg's cheeky invitation for Vettel to attend a Mercedes debrief, to help Ferrari catch up, backfired spectacularly when he was bested by his fellow German in both qualifying and on race-day. Rosberg was also accused of deliberately slowing Hamilton during qualifying, a suggestion both drivers dismissed. Whatever the goings-on in the paddock, Rosberg needs to make it happen on the track or risk seeing his season slip away.

Alonso and the case of what might have been

Fernando Alonso insisted he was one of the happiest people in the world before the Malaysian race, but he would have been forgiven for some wistful glances at the Ferrari garage as his former team ended a 34-race drought. In his first race back at McLaren, it was a sobering reality check for the Spaniard, 33, who has been searching for a third world title since 2006. While Ferrari celebrated, neither McLaren finished the race and they look unlikely to figure this season. Alonso also had to deal with the fall-out of his crash and memory loss during testing in what has so far been a troubled second coming so far.

No limits for Max

Toro Rosso’s record-breaker Max Verstappen has taken up the flag for the next generation of Formula One drivers with aplomb and arrives in Shanghai looking to rewrite history again. He became the sport’s youngest points scorer in Malaysia at 17 years and 180 days, embarrassing senior Red Bull drivers Daniel Ricciardo and Daniil Kvyat in the process. The sky looks to be the limit for the baby-faced Dutch teen.

Weekend at Bernie’s

Race weekends rarely pass without Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone stirring the pot. Before the Malaysian Grand Prix, Ecclestone declared Hamilton the best ever while taking a swipe at Vettel. But Ecclestone’s recent ideas to introduce points for qualifying, more double-point races, mixed-up grids and a women’s world championship could at least provoke some fascinating debate. Just for good measure, he even took a pop at petrol-head TV commentators.

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