Christian Horner, the Team Principal of Red Bull Racing, believes that Yuki Tsunoda is on the path to improvement following a “solid” performance at the Japanese Grand Prix. Despite facing challenges during the race weekend, Horner expressed confidence in Tsunoda’s pace, expecting it to develop “over the coming races.”
During his home race, Tsunoda finished in 12th place after starting 15th on the grid. A setback during Q2 pushed him towards the back of the field, making it difficult for him to advance positions in a race where overtaking was a struggle for many drivers. However, Tsunoda managed to overtake Liam Lawson and executed a well-timed undercut on Pierre Gasly.
Horner commended Tsunoda’s performance, stating, “Yuki had a solid race today… Yuki passed one car, we undercut one car, he followed Fernando Alonso for 90% of the race.” He emphasized Tsunoda’s learning experience throughout the weekend, noting his valuable feedback and anticipating an improvement in pace in the upcoming races.
One factor that may have impacted Tsunoda’s overtaking opportunities was the rear wing setup for high downforce, chosen as a precaution against potential rain. The setup, although beneficial for wet conditions, increased drag on the straights, hindering Tsunoda’s ability to make overtakes.
Reflecting on the race, Tsunoda mentioned, “I knew it’s going to be tough for overtaking… I thought, I just want to keep it the same car, to qualify and race because there was a chance for the rain.” Despite considering a lower downforce setup similar to Max Verstappen’s, Tsunoda opted for consistency due to limited time for adjustments and changing setups.
Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko acknowledged Tsunoda’s performance, labeling it as good and attributing any setbacks to an unfortunate mistake in Qualifying 2. Marko praised Tsunoda’s overall race display and expressed optimism for his future races.
In conclusion, with Horner’s backing and valuable insights from the Japanese Grand Prix, Tsunoda is poised to continue his journey of improvement and development in the competitive world of Formula 1.
