George Russell has stated Mercedes can't afford to become “complacent“ as it seeks to retain its advantage at the head of the F1 pecking order.
Mercedes has sprung out of the gates in strong fashion this year, winning eight out of the 11 grands prix staged so far to establish healthy leads in both championships.
Russell has struggled in comparison to his team-mate Kimi Antonelli, winning two races compared to the Italian's six.
The Brackley-based squad's advantage has dwindled in recent rounds, with Ferrari winning twice and McLaren triumphing once in the last five events.
Amid its run of success, Mercedes also faced various challenges - primarily reliability concerns that cost its drivers valuable points.
However, Russell has hailed the team for how it has navigated the difficult periods.
“I've got to be honest, we have an extremely resilient and focused group of people who are driven by data and performance,” Russell exclusively told RacingNews365.
“They are quite level-headed during the roller coaster of an F1 season.
“What I mean by this is, through the lows, the team did not feel so low - they were just focused on the process of performance and improving.
“Now through the highs, they're still so focused on the performance and improving.
“So the mentality and the mindset has actually been similar through the losses and through the success.”
As F1 continues to navigate the early stages of the new regulation cycle, teams are continuing to push for upgrades in a bid to climb the pecking order.
Russell insisted it would take very little for Mercedes' position as the benchmark to be usurped.
“Right now we cannot be complacent,” he said. “Today we're winning. You would be confident that this will continue for a number of races.
“But if you get the next upgrade wrong, or Ferrari brings a big upgrade, or one kink in the chain stops working, this success can be in the past and can be history.
“You can't be too complacent in the good times. You can't be too low and negative in the bad times.”
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