Ferrari's Maurizio Arrivabene says the Scuderia must change its mindset for 2018, and consider its successful achievements as habits rather than exceptional events.
The Italian outfit gave Mercedes a serious run for its money in the first part of the year, but its challenge dissipated thereafter on the back of mistakes, mishaps and reliability woes.
As Ferrari targets improvements over the winter before it mounts another challenge against its rival, team boss Arrivabene has identified a fundamental Mercedes strength which he believes the Scuderia should take on.
"I think one of the strengths of Mercedes, apart from the brand they're representing, is how the team is organised, it's also their habit to win," says the Italian manager.
"Sometimes you are going to have a pole position and it becomes an event. Pole position must become a habit and not an event. This is what I mean for a habit to win.
"It doesn't have to be perceived as an event, the victory, or the pole position. It must be the natural result of the work that you are doing.
"In this way, I have a lot of respect for them but in this way, we know what we have to do for the future in our side."
Beyond the team's progress which was validated this season by its race wins, Arrivabene insists the ultimate goal must remain the world championship
"Of course the number of pole positions and so on they are important somehow but the most important is the championship.
"The good number that we have at the moment is demonstrating the good job of the overall team but the fact that we were not able to win the championship means that it's not enough, so we have to push forward to next year to do it better."
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