Q & A with Ross Brawn

Ross Brawn: Yes, it has. Just getting to the first race was a huge challenge. We had a feeling the car would be competitive after what we were seeing from other car's performance, and that proved to be the case. But what we have seen in the races is really unbelievable.

Q. Were you expecting victory in Bahrain because after qualifying people were not so sure?

RB: It was a tough one today. It wasn't a given. Perhaps Australia was one we could only throw away, whereas here was one we had to win. My worry was really to look after the engine because in qualifying the engine was running too hot because of the cooling, and because it all got thrown together at the last minute we have underestimated the water cooling and since it was so hot on Saturday it was compromising the car.

They could only do one fast lap and then they had to cool the car down. And that is not great for using the tyres and getting into it. So qualifying was compromised. We felt we could cope with it in the race, and we did that. Friday had shown we could look after the tyres.

Q. So can that issue be corrected in Spain and do you have enough of an upgrade to keep yourself ahead of the field?

RB: Well, the cooling will not be a problem in the normal European climate, but there will be some races like Hungary in July/August and Abu Dhabi at the end of the year where there might be some problems. But we have got to do something about it, because when the engine runs that hot we lose some power. We will fix it, and we have a series for upgrades for Barcelona and beyond. We have to be optimistic. We have had no upgrades for the first four races, because there was nothing there. Getting to the first race was as much as we could manage and there was nothing in the cupboard. The process is starting again from the point at which we were able to buy the company and we got our programme well into the swing again and Barcelona will show us the benefit of getting it running again.

Q. How crucial was it to maximise your chances in the first four races, because you had the development advantage and now the others will catch up?

RB: Yes, it was fairly important. You always sneed to maximise your chances when you have a strong group performance. But it is also taking the points when you are not so on top of things, like we were in China. We were not fastest, and that is important as well because those points will be vital towards the end of the season. You need to strike when you've got the tools.

Q. Can you believe that you have enough budget/staff to win the title?

RB: I believe so, but I am not thinking that way. We are going out there to win races. We have got a great driver pairing and we've had a painful restructuring of the company, that is behind us now, and everyone can see what can be achieved. I am optimistic. We have some great drivers the rest is up to us.

Q. Where do you think you stand at the moment pace wise - are you the quickest?

RB: It is pretty close. There are two or three cars that are all quite similar, as we saw today. We had a good race strategy and that is what made the difference today.

Q. Do you feel they have developed more towards you in these races, or are they just getting more out of the cars?

RB: A bit of both. I think probably they are optimising the package they have and adding bits. Quite genuinely we've had nothing on the car since it was launched in Barcelona. Now is the time that we can start adding things and trying to improve.