The SF71H took two wins in the three opening Grands Prix, and set two new track records at the Bahrain International Circuit and the Shanghai International Circuit while qualifying on pole. Thus in these three races the car seemed to be faster than their rivals Mercedes AMG F1 W09 EQ Power+.[8] As of the end of the 2018 championship, the SF71H became Ferrari's most successful car in the hybrid engine era (2014–present), scoring 6 wins (5 by Vettel, 1 by Räikkönen) and 24 podiums, surpassing its predecessor, the SF70H, that had 5 wins and 20 podiums at the end of the 2017 season.