Mercedes mindset focused on improvements, not one-two finishes

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Toto Wolff believes Mercedes' four consecutive one-two finishes "flatters" his team whose mindset is focused on improvement rather than historical records.

Sunday's Azerbaijan Grand Prix saw Valtteri Bottas conquer his fifth career win in F1, the Finn leading home team mate Lewis Hamilton to help Mercedes become the first team in Grand Prix racing's history to achieve a one-two finish in each of the four opening races of the season.

Wolff insisted on looking beyond the numbers however as he assessed the relative performance between the Silver Arrows squad and Ferrari.

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"You can see the fluctuations of performance," said Wolff.

"Ferrari's performance in Bahrain was in a league of its own. Ours was in Melbourne and in China. [In Baku] they were good, us not so much.

"What I can see is that the overall order doesn't seem to have changed. It's still the same protagonists, but the first four races, the one-twos, flatters us."

In Baku, until qualifying, all signs pointed towards a clear Ferrari domination, but it was Mercedes who ultimately reigned supreme, thanks to flawless execution rather than outright speed according to Wolff.

"We see a strong Ferrari on Friday and Saturday, and I still believe that Charles was probably the fastest man on track, but like in Bahrain it didn't come together," he said.

"You can say now 'Stop saying these things, it's the fourth one-two in a row'. But it is still very much our mindset, we still believe that there are so many things which we need to understand better and improve.

"What we did in the first races was actually put all things together.

"The team didn't do any mistakes, the strategy calls were right, the drivers didn't put a foot wrong.

"That made us win the first four races. When you look at the other side, they had more problems."

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.