Q & A with Ross Brawn

Ross Brawn: It was obviously a great weekend. You can never say it is crucial because are still four races - 40 points - for the winner, and a long way to go. But it was a great result. I think it was a real, I would not say rejuvenation, but a real boost to the team going into the last four races.

I said the other day, I think the last four races should be split in terms of which ones are suiting us and which suit them. We have got a big upgrade for Singapore, so we are in as good a position as we had hoped to be at the moment.

Q. Did you expect it to be as decisive as this with the Red Bulls picking up just one point?

RB: No, you never do. I thought we would be strong here. I thought as soon as I saw the car working on Friday we would be in good shape here, and I think we had a very disciplined weekend to make sure we had a good car for the race. But it was certainly a bit uneasy in qualifying. Until they both did their last laps, it was taking a while for the tyres to warm up and we had a lot of fuel on board, but it all worked out.

Q. Strategically, as far as this race was concerned, Rubens was in command wasn't he?

RB: They both had the same fuel, and the rule is whoever is in the strongest position gets the slight advantage with the one lap. So, Jenson was always going to have to stop one lap earlier than Rubens because staying out longer is an advantage. They both had about 29 laps of fuel on board. We let Rubens run his normal distance and anticipated Jenson by a lap.

Q. One of the talking points of the weekend was how Jenson would deal with it, and the pressure he was under. Do you feel he has answered that today?

RB: Absolutely. There was less than one tenth in qualifying and that is what made the difference in the race. The drivers are very close, Jenson drove a very good race, came under a lot of pressure in the end and he handled it perfectly, so it proved what we always knew - he just had an opportunity to do it today.

Q. How are you going to manage the pair of them now? Will you let them go at it head-to-head?

RB: I think we have to. Any attempt to control it will end in failure!

Q. Isn't it easier for you now looking at the results with Red Bull that you can just let your two play their game?

RB: Yes. We said we would not give any preference until it was mathematically impossible for one to win, and I think this is going to go all the way until the last race.

Q. With these two nip and tuck, how much of a role are you personally playing in managing the situation?

RB: Everything is open on the table. They have had years of co-operating and they are continuing to co-operate. They share the information, and the engineers are good friends, they are trying to beat each other, and it is done in a healthy spirit and we must make sure that is maintained. We must make sure there is no deviation from that, because the team will remain strong as we all work together.

Q. Are you taking a step back, or are you hands on the tiller?

RB: It is just the odd comment. It doesn't need much to be honest because they are sensible guys. They like each other, so there is very little I need to do.

Q. How much of Rubens' experience is going to tell when it comes down to it?

RB: Well, Rubens has nothing to lose really. Jenson is the one with it to lose. So Rubens can maybe afford to be a bit more aggressive, and Jenson is going to be thinking more about scoring points. It is natural in this situation. So, there is a different mode I am sure for both of them. But they have both been around a very long time, so I don't think it will be a problem.

Q. Is there any reason left to think about a different driver line-up for next year?

RB: Not really, no. Both are doing a fantastic job.

Q. Will we see them again next year?

RB: Still to be decided. We have got other things that we have got to sort out, and drivers will come after that.

Q. Rubens talked in the press conference about brakes at Silverstone. Was that the turning point?

RB: He moved to the same brake system that Jenson had. He persisted for a couple of years with a different brake material and it does seem to have helped him. They are both fundamentally running the same material now, so it may have helped him.