The intense battle for the world title between Mercedes drivers Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton has taken nothing away from the German manufacturer's team spirit, according to Paddy Lowe.
With a massive showdown between the two drivers set for next weekend in Abu Dhabi, an agitated atmosphere opposing the two sides of the Mercedes garage would appear as likely as understandable. But tech boss Paddy Lowe begs to differ.
"I have to say both of them, despite what should be a very tense situation, they’re both in great shape, a very good mood, very professional, very good-humoured," Lowe told Motorsport.com
"We are the strongest we’ve ever been right now, with the best relationships, and the best team spirit we’ve ever had.
"You couldn’t wish for anything better at this point as we head into the championship finale.
As for a reliability glitch unfairly deciding next Sunday's outcome, Lowe admitted his wasn't troubled by this particular issue, convinced that Mercedes had done everything in its power to prevent failures.
"I don’t actually lose sleep over it, because I have the confidence of understanding that the team does a fantastic job to improve the underlying reliability.
"So while we will have failures from time to time, and we have had failures, actually we are at the most reliable we’ve ever been in this team.
"There may be an issue in Abu Dhabi, but if there is, it will be very uncharacteristic. I think we just go in there and we do our job as normal.
"I’m as confident as I can be that that'll give each driver a fair chance at the championship."
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