Warburton and co have won the last two tournament titles, with Wales picking up a third Grand Slam in eight seasons in 2012 before recovering from an early defeat to Ireland to claim back-to-back crowns with a record-breaking win over England last March.
No side has won a hat-trick of successive tournaments since the Five Nations became six in 2000 and the chance to go where no one else has ever gone before is driving Wales this winter.
“We’ve got a chance to create some history, to do something special and something no team has ever done before,” said Gatland at today’s tournament launch in London.
“From a coaching perspective, it’s nice to have that focus to start the campaign…and so the players coming into camp, that’s been the focus.
“We’ve got to make sure our complete focus is about Wales, the team performing well and creating a bit of history.
“It’s a tournament about confidence and momentum, it’s a tough tournament to win. You need a bit of luck to win this tournament but if you can get a bit of confidence and self-belief and get on a roll, you can do well.
“It’s nice to come back with the team having won the last couple of Six Nations’. It’s a real opportunity for us. We want a period of real sustained success now. This team can leave a legacy behind.”
Those sentiments were echoed by Warburton, with the national captain insisting that the prospect of three-in-a-row has been at the back of his mind ever since the disappointment of defeat to Australia in the autumn.
“Shaun Edwards (Wales defence coach) talked about three in a row after the Australia match,” said Warburton.
“He said to look for positives and to go away and play ourselves into the squad for the Six Nations where we would have a chance to create history. We’re all looking forward to the Six Nations now – it’s what we’re measured on.”
There are still a limited number of tickets available for Wales vs Italy at the Millennium Stadium on Saturday, February 1. There are single tickets available for Wales against France on February 21 but the home encounter with Scotland on the final weekend is sold out. To get your tickets go to www.wru.co.uk/tickets.
