Mercedes chief designer John Owen has claimed that the turmoil which has engulfed their rivals on the Formula 1 grid has left the world champions less worried about trying to defend their crown.
The Silver Arrows dominated 2014, winning all but three Grands Prix and taking the constructors' title by 306 points from Red Bull.
However, Owen believes that the chopping and changing among the ranks of their competitors has left Mercedes in a position of strength as they have maintained champion Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg.
He is quoted by Autosport as saying: "Our rivals seem to have sacked half their companies - so I think they are in a bit of a difficult situation.
"If they had remained stable and got their heads together, rather than criticising themselves and maybe the sport, I think we would be more worried than we are."
The 2015 season gets underway on March 15, with the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne.
