Fernando Alonso believes Mer*cedes to be the surprise of the For*mula One season ? and **w the benchmark for Ferrari to aspire to. From the 11 grands prix over the first period of the season, Mercedes team-mates Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton have claimed 10 poles and won nine races between them. ?**w we are getting used to see*ing them dominate every weekend, but I remember when we were in Jerez and Bahrain testing these new cars with very complex tech***logy.