Mercedes boss Toto Wolff was comfortable to let Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton fight until the end in Baku on Sunday.
Having run P2 throughout, the world champion attempted a late push for victory and would get within DRS range of his teammate on a couple of occasions.
But the traffic and a small error on the penultimate lap would ensure victory for Bottas, gaining redemption for his heartbreaking loss 12 months earlier.
"[We] let them race. They are experienced, they know that racing must be clean, we see lap one was very clean," Wolff said.
"This is a track where we mustn't take crazy risks because you could lose both of the cars."
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It was speculated, however, that the Austrian had called off the battle when he was seen making a radio call from the garage.
"I was not talking to the drivers," he confirmed. "I am not giving myself permission to talk to the drivers because I get emotional and then sometimes I regret what I say. So I never talk to the drivers directly during the race.
"It was more a discussion with a group of strategists on the pit wall. It was a discussion whether Vettel would actually come close, whether we would save the engine, it was about whether Leclerc or Verstappen would go for fastest lap, it was more an overall discussion.
"We acknowledged that it could get a little bit racy at the end, but we didn't talk to them."
As it was, Mercedes set a new record for four consecutive 1-2 finishes to start the 2019 season, surpassing the three achieved by Williams in 1992.
