Yuki Tsunoda has identified the area he needs to understand on the Red Bull after being dropped into the car with little warning ahead of the Japanese Grand Prix. After a difficult home race, he is eager to fully utilise the performance the RB21 has to offer him in Bahrain.
Following a difficult first couple of race weekends for Liam Lawson, Red Bull management decided to swap the Kiwi with Tsunoda ahead of the Suzuka race. But after several red flags threw his preparation into chaos, the Japanese driver failed to qualify higher than P15. But in a race where there were only 11 overtakes in total after the first lap, Tsunoda’s 12th place finish was impressive.
“I am looking forward to being in Bahrain this weekend and having time to fully focus on racing with my Team. Japan was a crazy week, the whole build up was very busy and the week itself too,” Tsunoda said in Red Bull’s race preview.
His Japanese campaign showed potential, but his race was compromised after his Saturday performance. This left him with “mixed feelings” about his debut.
“I loved having my home race but I am equally excited to have a quieter week in Bahrain to get to grip with this car properly, really work with my Team and settle into life with Oracle Red Bull Racing,” he continued.
Liam Lawson, Racing Bulls, Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull Racing
Photo by: Peter Fox – Getty Images
“I think if I can understand our tyre prep better then I can put the car in a better place for race day and hopefully score the points and performance I know we are capable of.”
The Bahrain Grand Prix, unlike Japan, will hard on tyres with long straights and tough braking zones. The rear tyres will be put through their paces, especially.
“I learnt so much across the weekend in Suzuka, I understand the RB21 so much better now and also how the Team operate in different ways to what I have been used to. It’s down to me to apply that now and make sure I can perform and get the most from this car.”
He continued:
“Bahrain is a track we all know very well and will be totally different conditions to Japan, so I need to get up to speed quickly and ensure qualifying goes well this week.”
Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko has made his expectations clear, something that the driver understands.
“I need to be as close to Max as possible to try and compete for the constructors’ title and benefit the team strategically in every race.”
