Red Bulletin: So Christian, what’s the plan for the second half of the season?
Christian Horner: We’re going to attack! We can’t play it safe, there isn’t any point; basically we have to attack every race weekend as best we can. I think the championships will take care of themselves; Brawn and Jenson have a massive lead, we just have to approach every weekend with a view to doing whatever we can.

RB: Being able to concentrate on the job in hand sounds like a good thing for Red Bull Racing…
CH: We’ve moved forward here [at Silverstone], for sure, and the guys in the factory are working tremendously hard and doing a great job. Hopefully it will allow us to push the Brawns very, very hard.

RB: Can you point to any particular catalyst for the improved competitiveness of RBR this season?
CH: I think it’s the culmination of many things coming together. We saw signs of it last year and with the complete regulation change there was an opportunity for Adrian [Newey, chief technical officer] and his engineers, and they’ve done a great job.

RB: Did you view the change of regulations with any trepidation? As you say, the car – if not the engine – was starting to perform well last year…
CH: I think regulation changes always provide an opportunity and the guys grabbed it. You have a level playing field and every organisation is able to approach the problem with a clean sheet of paper. Suddenly you see it doesn’t have to be all about money. This year F1 is all about engineering ingenuity.

RB: Regardless of how and where, will there be budget cuts for next year?
CH: Yes, absolutely. If the FOTA proposals were to come to fruition, it would represent a 30 – 40 per cent cut in costs for us. I think it’s very important for F1 and something all the teams are taking very seriously.

RB: Out on the track, is there just a trace of needle creeping into the relationship between Sebastian and Mark?
CH: I think it’s just healthy, competitive rivalry. They’re very professional with each other, but they’re pushing each other at the same time. We’ve got two guys who are at different stages in their career doing a great job.

RB: Sebastian didn’t seem particularly thrilled being effectively told to save his engine rather than challenge Mark for second place in Turkey…
CH: He’s a young guy! But he fully understood the situation. Those engines have got to last four races, the temperatures in Turkey were very high; we’ve had two blow-up already so it was the right thing to do.

RB: The Red Bull cars seem to lose a lot of practice laps due to mechanical failures in comparison to the rest of the field. Is there any specific issue you’re looking at?
CH: I’m not sure why it’s happening. At Silverstone it was simply a consequence of Mark hitting a curb a bit hard and the impact shutting down the electronics. Before that I think there’s been a little bit of bad luck, but also maybe because we’re trying more things and maybe that comes with a cost. We’ve also had some engine failures. Renault have had some issues too [with the same engine] so I don’t think that’s necessarily a problem with our car.

RB: With each driver limited to eight engines for the entire season, are you going to face penalties toward the end of the year?
CH: Not at the moment. Luckily we’re still just OK, but more failures would be a problem.

RB: The last time you were on the pitwall with a driver dominating the competition was when Tonio Liuzzi was driving your Arden F3000 car. Does this feel the same?
CH: The principals are fundamentally the same; but F1 is a much bigger fish…