For Mercedes to be denied in Brazil, Ferrari will have to score 13 points more than Mercedes -- a feat they have managed only twice in 19 races so far this year.
Rosberg and triple world champion Lewis Hamilton shared testing duties on Tuesday, with the Briton taking over in the afternoon for a race simulation. Together, they did 169 laps without a hitch
Sebastian Vettel has lived through a number of false dawns at Ferrari but bright sunshine bathed the team's garage after the German's Australian Grand Prix victory on Sunday.
The German was joined on the front row of the grid by reigning world champion and closest rival Lewis Hamilton, in a Mercedes.
Three-time world champion Lewis Hamilton dominated practice at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix on Friday, putting Mercedes on top of the timesheets and leaving his Formula One rivals with plenty to ponder before the weekend.
Monaco's Leclerc, who had started on pole position for the first time, lost power with 10 laps to go while leading and finished third with an extra point for the fastest lap.
Nico Rosberg led from pole to flag to win the Singapore Grand Prix on Sunday and celebrate his 200th Formula One race by retaking the championship lead from Mercedes team mate Lewis Hamilton. After a chaotic start that brought out a safety car on the opening lap, Rosberg stayed clear of a late charging Daniel Ricciardo in a Red Bull at the Marina Bay Street Circuit as Hamilton completed the podium in third place.
Daniel Ricciardo dashed Red Bull team mate Max Verstappen's hopes of becoming Formula One's youngest ever pole-sitter on Saturday while championship leader Lewis Hamilton qualified third for Mercedes at the Mexican Grand Prix. Hamilton, who need only finish seventh on Sunday to secure his fifth title with two races to spare, will have Ferrari rival Sebastian Vettel alongside on the second row.
Australian Daniel Ricciardo won the Chinese Grand Prix for Red Bull on Sunday while Ferrari's championship leader Sebastian Vettel finished only eighth.
Lewis Hamilton's hopes of clinching his fifth Formula One World championship at the US Grand Prix were boosted on Friday when Ferrari rival Sebastian Vettel was handed a three-place grid penalty for a practice infringement.
History suggests that when drivers are fighting for race wins and championships, and enjoy equal status in the same competitive cars, then real friendship is often the first casualty.
'Every great Formula One season is marked by a great rivalry. Last year it was our internal battle between Lewis and Nico and this year it seems that the fight is on between Ferrari and Mercedes and Lewis and Sebastian'
Triple Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton won the Hungarian Grand Prix on Sunday to seize the championship lead from team mate Nico Rosberg for the first time this season.
Triple Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton won the Austrian Grand Prix on Sunday after a last-lap collision with Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg as they fought for the lead.
New boy Vettel plays down Ferrari hopes in Melbourne.
The German secured his first pole since Spain in May when the red flags came out with 36 seconds remaining, leaving team mate and championship leader Lewis Hamilton no chance of claiming a 12th pole in 14 races.
Finland's Valtteri Bottas seized the first Formula One victory of his career at the Russian Grand Prix on Sunday after jumping both Ferraris at the start and then holding his nerve over the tense closing laps.
'It doesn't really make a big difference if I go and drive like I do right now because I have already lost so much through the year. I can't give up because you never know what can happen. It's unlikely but you never know'
The four times world champion is enjoying his best start to a season since he was at Red Bull in 2011, leading Lewis Hamilton by seven points after two wins and a second place from the first three races.
Montreal-born Lance Stroll, who celebrated his 18th birthday on October 29 and has yet to pass his driving test, will be the first Canadian F1 racer since 1997 world champion Jacques Villeneuve, who won his title at Williams and retired in 2006.
Nico Rosberg crossed the line a mammoth 37.7 seconds ahead of German compatriot Sebastian Vettel, who recovered after colliding with his Ferrari team mate Kimi Raikkonen at the first corner, to claim his third win from three races this season.
Hamilton's flying lap of one minute 22.188 seconds set a new record at Albert Park but was only 0.268 seconds in front of German Vettel, offering the tantalising prospect of a competitive championship after three years of domination by the Silver Arrows.
Nico Rosberg eased to victory at the Japanese Grand Prix on Sunday with a drive that handed Mercedes their third straight constructors championship and extended the German's lead in his pursuit of a maiden Formula One title.
Lewis Hamilton is hoping rain will come to the rescue as a Hockenheim heatwave threatens to dash Mercedes's hopes of a home German Grand Prix win on Sunday.
Sebastian Vettel handed Ferrari their first Canadian Grand Prix pole position since Michael Schumacher in 2001 on Saturday while Formula One championship leader Lewis Hamilton qualified fourth for Mercedes. Vettel, 14 points behind the Briton, will start from the front for the fourth time at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve after setting a track record of one minute 10.764 seconds on a sunny afternoon.
Lewis Hamilton can become only the third driver to win 50 grands prix when Formula One returns from its month-long August break and gets back to business at Sunday's Belgian Grand Prix.
Lewis Hamilton pulverised the track record to claim pole position on Saturday ahead of a US Grand Prix that could secure the Mercedes driver's fourth Formula One world championship.
'I'm so grateful for everyone who helped me be here, to raise the bar and lift the cup'
Formula One leader Lewis Hamilton smashed the Suzuka track record to seize a dominant Japanese Grand Prix pole position on Saturday with Ferrari rival Sebastian Vettel lining up alongside on the front row.
The last time Kimi Raikkonen stood on top of a Formula One podium, Lewis Hamilton had just joined Mercedes with one championship to his name and Sebastian Vettel was riding high with Red Bull.
Despite starting from the back of the grid, Nico Hulkenberg and Sergio Perez collected seven points for Sahara Force India from the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, in Melbourne on Sunday.
Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel put himself on pole position to retake the Formula One lead from Lewis Hamilton after setting the fastest lap in qualifying for the Singapore Grand Prix.
Triple world champion Lewis Hamilton celebrated his first win of the Formula One season in a crash-filled Monaco Grand Prix on Sunday.
The triple champion, who started the race from a record 69th career pole position, led Finnish team mate Valtteri Bottas to a runaway one-two finish in front of the massed ranks of red-shirted Ferrari fans.
Formula One world championship leader Sebastian Vettel won the Bahrain Grand Prix for Ferrari on Sunday in the German's 200th race start.
Triple world champion Lewis Hamilton took a record 69th Formula One pole position with a wet weather masterclass at the Italian Grand Prix.
Thunder, lightning and torrential rain washed out second practice at the U.S. Formula One Grand Prix on Friday after Nico Rosberg went fastest for Mercedes in a largely meaningless morning session.
Lewis Hamilton stormed to pole position at the Brazilian Grand Prix on Saturday with Mercedes team mate and title rival Nico Rosberg joining the triple Formula One world champion on the front row. On a damp and overcast Sao Paulo afternoon, it was the 60th pole of the Briton's career, eight short of Michael Schumacher's record, and his first in Brazil since 2012 when he was at McLaren. With his title on the line, it was also one of Hamilton's most important in a roller-coaster season marked by mechanical setbacks.
Fresh from his 50th Formula One win, triple world champion Lewis Hamilton remains convinced anything is possible in the title race even if he could lose his crown as early as Sunday.
Formula One's 'halo' head protection device makes its race debut this season in a 21-round championship with France and Germany back on the calendar and some new faces joining the old favourites on the starting grid.