Team Representatives: Alan Permane, Frédéric Vasseur and Toto Wolff.

Alan, why don't we start with you? Congratulations are in order because you've signed a new long-term contract with Racing Bulls. Tell us a little bit about that. Tell us why you've committed until 2031.
Alan Permane: Yeah, a proud moment, honestly, for me to be offered a contract like that. Long-term stability for myself and the team. I think things are going very, very well. As we can see, we're in a... I would say I've been saying for a while we're in a tight fight for fifth. We're not actually in such a tight fight for fifth. I'm very cautious of this weekend because, with the weather we have, and we saw Alpine do a couple of years ago here, anything is possible. But I think we have a decent buffer, and I want to build on that. I want to be part of this team long-term. I want to lead it together with Peter towards greater things.

You mentioned Peter because it's an expanded role, isn't it? You're co-CEO, sporting. How's it going to work between you and Peter Bayer?
AP: Yeah, I don't think anything will change. It's clear Peter looks after the commercial side, the PR side, the comms and marketing, and I look after the sporting, the design, production and racing side. I don't think anything will change there.

Now, Alan, while we're talking contracts, when can we expect news about your drivers for 2027?
AP: I'm not going to give you a date, Tom. I'm sure you're not surprised to hear that. Look, Red Bull's had a very successful young driver programme, and I think, if I want to be... and I don't want to be critical of it, but I think if you guys are critical of it, maybe sometimes the drivers haven't been able to have enough time to settle, or maybe some snap decisions have been made. We're trying to apply a little bit of science, and that takes some time. So we are looking at everything and studying, analysing, and time is on our side. We're not in a rush to do anything, and I'm very confident the right decision will be made. I realise it's frustrating for our drivers. I realise it's frustrating for everyone else, but we want to get it right, and we will get it right. I'm sure when we announce it in the coming weeks, everyone will be happy.

Final one from me, Alan. Can we talk about car performance now? You've finished in the points in seven consecutive races. What is your car's greatest strength?
AP: I think it's not just the strength of the car. I think it's the strength of the whole organisation at the moment. We are putting stuff on that comes from the wind tunnel through to production through to the race team, and it works first time. I think that, and these guys will tell you, is a massive strength. It just accelerates your performance. You don't spend time back-to-backing at the track. You don't have to go back to the wind tunnel to understand why something doesn't work. So, I think if there's one thing I could pick out, it would be that. Of course, our drivers are both delivering, and you say they're under pressure. They're both working incredibly well under pressure. If you say the last seven races, I think it's only two rounds out of... I don't know how many we've done now that we haven't scored. So, it's quite an impressive record for this team.

Alan, thank you very much for that. Fred, if we could come to you now. A lot's been said and written about what happened between your drivers in Mexico. Have you had a chance to sit down with them since then to discuss it?
Fred Vasseur: We did it, We did it yesterday evening because I had to fly back to Europe between the two races. It went well. It was good to discuss, good to clarify my position and their position. It was good to do, and now we turn the page, and we are focused on the next one.

You say you're turning the page, but what are you changing going forward?
FV: The guidelines are still the same. I think they accumulated perhaps a bit of frustration because they are starting each weekend side by side, and you have a kind of accumulation of that. But at the end of the day, the guidelines are always the same: they need to respect each other. That they are two competitors with a fighting spirit, for sure, but they need to have respect for the other one. But mainly, and firstly, they need to respect the brand, the team, the people working at home and the people working on track. I think we are putting a lot of effort into this, and the message was clear and will stay clear.

They raced cleanly in China and Japan, why do you think they're unable to do that now?
FV: Unable is a bit harsh. I didn't see a contact between the two cars, also. It's taking huge proportions because we were one-two, but there was no contact between the cars. It's not always like this between two teammates. For sure, it's not a good move because when you are one-two, you are expecting to stay one-two, and we didn't. On the top, we took the penalty and this won the race. But overall, we still scored the highest number of points over the weekend. I would have preferred to finish P1, for sure, but we have to take it, stay calm and take it step by step.

Lewis thinks Charles races him harder than any of his previous teammates do. Do you agree with him?
FV: I'm not sure that he said something like this. He said that he was fighting probably a bit harder with him than with some others. But if you have a look at what Charles did in Austin in the first section, everybody said that he was magic, that the line was fine between the two, but he didn't crash into the other car, also.

Fred, you have a lot of experience working with drivers. Is this pair one of the most challenging of your career?
FV: For sure, we have two experienced guys, two competitive guys. There are now four or five races in a row that we are at the front, scoring the highest number of points after Monza and Madrid. Then, for sure, you have a kind of escalation because you all want to win races. I think it's probably the downside of the system, that we have two competitive guys starting each weekend next to each other. But I think if we are P2 today, it's also because we have two guys who are very, very close, and we have to manage it. But it's a choice. It's a choice in the line-up, and I have the positive and the negative, but I will deal with the negative.

On a lighter note, Fred, has Charles asked you to be godfather to his baby girl?
FV: I have four children at home, and I don't want to be the godfather of all the children of my drivers.

Fred, thank you very much. Toto, if we could come to you now, please. It's been a week of celebrations for the team. What's been the highlight so far?
Toto Wolff: I forgot these things. Well certainly, Sunday was a highlight. I found myself in a strange situation that during the race and after the finish, I felt zero emotion and said to myself, "What's wrong with you?" And then going into the stadium that was properly my highlight of the weekend, seeing Kimi, the team, the parents, everybody being so happy, and you realise what he's done is just magic. And, yeah, that was my highlight. Other than that, there were many hours in an aeroplane.

Look, Kimi's been busy this week. What kind of ambassador for Formula 1 do you think he'll become?
TW: They all have their different personalities, you know. And what stands out with Kimi, I've said it very often, is that he's preserved his authenticity. He's a very polite, charming young man who is capable of deploying capability or power in the car that sometimes doesn't fit the guy out of the car. I was always saying in the past, you can't expect a puppy outside of the car and a lion in the car. And I think what we're seeing is a lion in the car and a very, very good young man outside.

Now, you can clinch the Constructors' Championship here in Brazil this weekend. You've won a lot of championships now. How does 2026 compare to the ones that came before?
TW: They're all different, with different challenges and situations. The Drivers' was very special this year, but the Constructors' is obviously the one that pays the bonuses. So, it's something that is very, very important for all of the organisation. You know, you pay the mortgage, the kitchen, or the holiday, or the school of the children. And the driver is also very aware of that.

Final one from me. It was a tough Sunday for George in Mexico. Have you caught up with him here? Is he in a better place now?
TW: Yeah, certainly very tough for him. I mean, you know, he's still... he's gone to see Kimi, which is great that he was capable of doing it. But when a season goes against you like that, it's obviously very difficult to go through these moments. But I spoke to him. We texted the same evening, we spoke the next day, looking forward to this race and the next season. And that's the mentality of a fighter. This one is lost. What can I do best to win the next one?

Questions From The Floor

(Ted Kravitz - Sky Sports F1) This one's for Fred. Fred, I appreciate what you said about the incident in Mexico City, but maybe, I think, for some Ferrari fans, for some Tifosi, maybe some independent fans out there, it wasn't so much that they didn't show some respect for each other and the team. It's that they didn't work together to make sure that Ferrari won the race and not one of your competitors. Do you agree in your meeting that they would be able and would work together in future to ensure a Ferrari win rather than handing the victory to someone in another car?
FV: Yes, Ted. When I said that the message was clear, it's that I think it's true for Ferrari, but it's true for every single team on the grid: they are working for the team, and the team has to come first. For sure, in this situation, we failed collectively because we were one-two and we didn't win the race at the end. That means it's clear that we failed, and we have to react. But, yes, the conclusion of the meeting yesterday evening was clear. It was a clear reminder that Ferrari is coming first. It's coming first for the brand, for the employees, for the Tifosi, and this, we have to keep it in mind.

Check out our Friday gallery from Interlagos here.