Of the 82 Grands Prix held since the introduction of the hybrid formula in 2014, Mercedes has won 63 of them, 76.8%, compared to Ferrari's 10 and Renault's 9.

However, for the first time since 2014, Mercedes has gone three races without winning, causing some to believe that the German manufacturer's reign is coming to an end.

Speaking to reporters in Baku ahead of this weekend's Azerbaijan Grand Prix however, Lewis Hamilton was keen to play down the significance of the statistic or his team's relatively poor start to the season.

"It's only been three races," he said. "We would like to have won races but it has been a learning process. We know it's a three-way battle. It is not going to be easy and it requires a lot of work to perform at our best."

In the break since China the Briton has taken time out, including attending the Coachella festival in California. "I needed to switch off and spend some time with friends," he said. "I had a great weekend, a lot of travelling but that's what I do. I get back in the car feeling refreshed, feeling like it is not a new start but it is coming back and reset."

Losing two races to Ferrari and one to Red Bull, amidst claims that the 2018 Mercedes could be another 'Diva', Hamilton admits that, as in previous years, the biggest issue facing the team is getting its tyres to work.

"It's a challenge we all relish and believe me when I say every single person in the team is hyped up," he insisted. "When we finish weekends and we have not delivered the way we feel we should, it is not a great feeling. But this team does not take it as a negative, it takes it as an opportunity to grow and pull closer and extract more from ourselves.

"The Ferraris and Red Bulls were quick here last year and I anticipate it will be the same and we have no idea where we will be this weekend. We are still the same team and I believe we can battle it out with these guys.

"Now we have Red Bull close to their best and Ferrari at their best, if we are able to pull through and deliver as we have in previous years it would be the biggest achievement this team would have accomplished."

Check out our Thursday gallery from Baku, here.