Lewis Hamilton has insisted that he is keeping calm, even though he is already 17 points behind at the start of his 2016 championship defence.

Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg has extended his late 2015 winning streak into the start of the new season, winning both in Australia and Bahrain.

Hamilton's Bahrain race was marred by another bad start and a first corner collision with Valtteri Bottas, but the Briton says that he is telling his crew to keep calm.

"I told my engineers that it's only the start. It's two races out of 21," he is quoted as saying by Auto Motor und Sport. "I know what I can do.

"I have an excellent foundation with this car as both times I've been on pole."

Some are surprised that Hamilton, well known for not putting a smile on second place, is dealing with his early 2016 defeats so well, especially when he was punted into a half-spin by Bottas that damaged his car in Bahrain.

"Valtteri doesn't need to apologise. It was a normal racing incident," the 31-year-old insisted.

"I have learned to deal with days such as these."

Next up in two weeks' time is the Chinese Grand Prix, which Hamilton won in 2015.