Webber’s "Not bad for a number two driver" radio message to team boss Christian Horner on the slowing down lap was especially telling. It seemed to be evidence of a growing tension in the team, something that has been brewing ever since the two Red Bulls had their infamous coming together during the Istanbul race.
Further proof was Vettel’s cryptic comments in a post-race interview, which suggested the ‘good fun happy family’ image of Red Bull is just a thin veneer that’s starting to crack in places. "Obviously I focus on myself and so does he I guess," said the German. "Especially after what happened in the past people have different opinions. I have opinions, I have my experiences and sometimes, good and bad, you get to know people a little better and see their true faces. So I think I have learned my lesson and focus on myself."
At least Red Bull managed to get both its cars into the points. Over at Ferrari, it was a disastrous afternoon at Silverstone. Fernando Alonso unsurprisingly seemed a bit miffed at the stewards’ decision to give him a drive-through penalty after he cut a corner to pass the Renault of Robert Kubica.
Arguably it was a harsh punishment, especially as Alonso didn’t really have anywhere else to go, and Kubica then retired soon after. The icing on the cake was that the penalty had to be served immediately after the Safety Car had been out, which meant most of the field could stream by as the Spaniard drove slowly down the pit lane.
But maybe Alonso should have let Kubica back through straight away after the incident, instead of getting on the radio to ask Ferrari to sort something out with the race officials? He certainly didn’t bother with the radio much after his drive-through, petulantly telling his team not to talk to him for the rest of the race. And he wasn’t in the mood for a chat afterwards, either, apparently being ‘too angry’ to be interviewed. A while later though Alonso had calmed down enough to say, allegedly without any hint of sarcasm, "What the stewards say is always right so I am not too upset." Yeah, right.
Conversely, McLaren managed to salvage a decent result from what could have been a race to forget. Jenson Button clawed his way up from fourteenth on the grid to an eventual fourth place, thanks to some decent early overtaking, retirements and a good pit stop strategy. Only a rumoured lack of fuel meant he couldn’t go on to challenge Nico Rosberg in his Mercedes for third place.
Team-mate Lewis Hamilton meanwhile secured second spot, benefiting from Vettel’s first lap puncture. He now leads the championship with 145 points, 12 ahead of Button in second.
