Formula 1 teams know that in a championship where they face the media spotlight so much, it's always better to under-promise and over-deliver. Being too cocky only ever comes back to haunt you.
British American Racing never really made up for designer Adrian Reynard's bold aim to win its first race. Ron Dennis was never allowed to forget his conviction that he would have no problems taming Juan Pablo Montoya like a "stallion".
So when Mercedes, a team that has in recent years has mastered the art of sending the right message, came out last week with a quite bullish short video from James Allison that its new car would "blow away" its old one in a straight fight, it made you sit up and take notice.