Wasps director of rugby Dai Young fears being sucked into the Gallagher Premiership relegation battle if Sunday's trip to Exeter becomes a "horrible afternoon".
Young views the Chiefs' ominous 52-20 victory at Leicester last weekend as a warning of what can happen if the runaway league leaders are allowed to hit top stride.
A week after the trip to Sandy Park, Wasps must host Saracens in a challenging pair of fixtures, but Young believes victory over Exeter is a realistic goal.
"If results don't go your way you could still be in a fight at the bottom, but we want to push on from our win against Worcester," Young said.
"We have the two best teams in the league coming up. If we get things right on the day at Exeter then there's no reason why we can't get a result.
"But if we're not at our best, then it could be a horrible afternoon. We saw what they did to Leicester Tigers last week.
"We know what a quality team they are and we know what's coming our way. They have a fantastic driving line-out, probably the best in Europe.
"They have a real big scrum, but they've added a lot to their attacking game over the last couple of months.
"We need to get results no matter who we're playing and it will be a real reflection of where we are at."
Exeter head coach Ali Hepher believes the Chiefs and Wasps bring out the best in each other.
"A bit like boxing, styles win matches. Every time we play them, it's always a cracking match. It's two sides who want to play rugby," Hepher said.
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