So far, there have been few signs of that situation repeating itself, with Hamilton having said pre-season working with Bottas is already his best team-mate relationship in F1.
Following his "surreal" first Formula One victory in Sochi, Mercedes' Valtteri Bottas played down the late-race pressure from Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel.
The 32-year-old Briton hugged Bottas in parc ferme, and latterly managed a smile and clenched fist for the cameras as Mercedes celebrated the Finn's victory in front of their garage after the race.
However, two weeks later the Mercedes team-mates are back on an even keel.
"I just wasn't quick enough today, it was all in the last sector.so there's some work to do", said Hamilton, who had racked up six poles in a row before Bottas took his career first in Bahrain two weeks ago. "We have been able to be very professional so far".
Three-time Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton says he "can't explain" the reason why he struggled at the Russian Grand Prix.
Kimi Raikkonen learned in the middle of the race that he was behind Valtteri Bottas in Sochi and not behind Lewis HamiltonKimi Raikkonen is known for its spontaneous radio reactions.
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Likewise, Meyer did not respond when asked if she was concerned about possible conflicts of interest facing her brother. The Obama administration had proposed a number of program changes, including raising the minimum investment.
But it is going to be a long year and at some point things might get a bit more tricky and tight. But I don't think it will affect the relationship and dynamics between the team like it did. between Nico and Lewis.
The win moved Bottas towards title contention - he is now within 23 points of Ferrari's championship leader Sebastian Vettel and just 10 behind Hamilton.
Yet Toto Wolff and Niki Lauda, the two Austrians in charge at Mercedes, are both confident that the ugly in-team fighting, which at times marred Mercedes' dominance over the past three years, will not resurface this season.
He said: "The relationship between the two of them is very much intact". If you look previous year it's all about starts, and if you lose a place in those, it's going to be a boring race.
Wolff has echoed his previous sentiment that Bottas and Hamilton share a mutual respect but understands they are both "fierce competitors" aiming to win world titles. "Lewis was one of the first ones to congratulate Valtteri on his first race victory".
Wolff told ESPN their relationship is "completely different" to the one Hamilton and Rosberg had and promised it would stay healthy.
With new regulations brought in over the winter, this is expected to be a development race and the second half of the season could result in teams pulling away as they find more speed.
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