Mercedes has not always had the fastest car in 2019 - Wolff

Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff says the team is hoping to stay out of trouble in Baku. The past two races in Baku have been full of action from start to finish, throwing up some surprise results in the process.

After three-straight one-two finishes to open the 2019 season, Wolff insists that the team is still staying realistic with the threat from Ferrari and Red Bull behind at the forefront of their thinking.

In the team's race preview ahead of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, the Mercedes boss insisted that the Silver Arrows had not always been the fastest car this season despite their incredible run of results.

"Three 1-2s in the first three races represent a fantastic start to the season," Wolff said.

"We were able to maximise our opportunities, although we didn't always have the fastest car. The team has done a very good job and performed strongly in every department, the double-stacked pit stop in Shanghai is just one visible example of many that are happening every week at all levels of the team."

The Austrian also highlighted the unpredictable nature of the Baku street circuit and added that the team would need to stay out of trouble to secure a positive result.

"But we know that we need to keep pushing. The next stop will take us to Azerbaijan where we've seen some very entertaining races in recent years and I'm sure that this year will be no different.

"The layout of the track presents unique challenges and it will be interesting to see which team will find the best compromise to deal with the mixture of long straights and slow corners.

"Baku is not purely about performance, though, and staying out of trouble is also important for a good result in Azerbaijan."