"No rest from the g."

His victory at the Red Bull Air Race in Budapest was so out of the blue that insiders even questioned his ability to open the champagne bottle properly on the podium. In interview, Britain's Steve Jones talks about his newly acquired thirst for victory, difficulties in the aeroplane shop and his envy of punks.

To what extent has your victory at the Red Bull Air Race in Budapest changed your life?

My life is very similar to how it was before the win, but my voicemail now has a lot more to cope with. It's had to record many messages of congratulation in the last few days.

Were you yourself surprised by the victory?

Yes, a bit. I had secretly fancied my chances of a podium finish indeed, but I would also have been very happy with a third place.

What's your nicest memory of your first Red Bull Air Race World Series victory?

I heard a commentator say he wasn't sure whether I'd even be able to open the champagne bottle properly - because I'd never won a race like this before.

Well? Did you have problems opening the bottle?

No, I think I made a good job of it.

It must also have been something special for you to have your old friend Paul Bonhomme next to you on the podium in third place.

That made the day even better. Paul can’t agree with me on that, unfortunately, as he sees things a bit differently, but from my point of view it was the perfect result.

What are your expectations now for your home race in Longleat? Do you suddenly see yourself as favourite?

Not necessarily as favourite, but I've proved I can win. Longleat will undoubtedly be a very difficult race and will also be particularly challenging for the pilots in terms of fitness. The course is very twisty, very turny, which means that we're permanently subjected to considerable g-force in the turns. There's simply no rest from the g in Longleat.

Given that most pilots are now flying Edge 540s, which means that the technical playing field is more or less level, will winning now depend to an even greater extent on physical fitness?

We’re now in the middle of the season; I think that all of the pilots are on a similar level in terms of fitness. And quite a high one at that. But of course you need to be extremely fit to win.

Looking at the overall standings in the Red Bull Air Race World Series, we can see that you're already 18 points behind series leader Kirby Chambliss with three races to go. There are six points for a win, so you're probably no longer thinking about the overall standings in 2006. Are you already looking ahead to 2007?

It's true, I've left it a bit late in the year to start winning. Nevertheless, I'd like to continue doing so and climb as far up the rankings as I can. Next year I'd like to be able to score points right from the beginning.

Why did you wait until the middle of the season before switching to the Edge 540?

Quite simply because I couldn't find the right machine any sooner.

Oh, so you can't just go into the shop and say, "Hello, I'd like a yellow one, please"?

Yes, you can. But the salesman would say, "Of course. When precisely in 2008 would you like to have it delivered?" Strange but true: it takes over a year at the earliest to get your hands on a plane like that.

To find any information on the Internet about you, you have to look very hard indeed. The most famous Steve Jones you find on the World Wide Web is the former guitarist with punk rock band the Sex Pistols. Do you have a problem with this snotty-nosed brat apparently being more famous than you?

To be honest: Yes, I'd love to be the most famous Steve Jones in the world. The best way would definitely be to win as many Red Bull Air Races as possible. That would also have the positive side-effect that I'd get more practice at opening champagne bottles.