Yuki Tsunoda caught off guard by sudden change in car balance in Austria F1 qualifying

Red Bull’s Yuki Tsunoda has explained his dismal qualifying performance in the Austrian Grand Prix qualifying, saying he was caught off guard by a sudden change in the balance of the car.

Tsunoda qualified 18th and more than a second off the pace at the Red Bull Ring on Saturday, only finishing ahead of Williams’ Carlos Sainz and the Sauber of Nico Hulkenberg.

It was the latest in the series of tough qualifying sessions for the Red Bull driver, having also failed to get out of Q1 in the previous four rounds.

Tsunoda explained that he was fairly satisfied with his car on his first run, but things took a turn for the worse when he fitted a new set of tyres for a final push lap in Q1.

“I don’t know [what happened]. I have to check but the balance was completely off the last lap,” he explained.

“It felt quite good in the first [la[] push but on the second push, somehow [it was] just completely off. I don’t think I’ve done anything wrong with warm-up or anything. To be honest, the balance was completely different so it’s hard to explain.

He added: “First push [lap], it felt good. It wasn’t a perfect lap so obviously something I could have done better. But balance felt completely different between the first and second push, [which] caught me a bit by surprise.”

It was a difficult day for Red Bull on home turf, with teammate Max Verstappen managing only seventh in the sister RB21.

The Dutchman was also heard complaining about the handling of the car over team radio between different runs in qualifying, as he eventually ended up almost a second down on polesitter Lando Norris in Q3.

Tsunoda admitted that his recent run of results in qualifying has left him “frustrated”, with Verstappen’s experience allowing him to better manage the weaknesses of the Red Bull - including its narrow operational window.

“I was expecting Q3 at least today,” he said. “The car felt good and on the first push, it felt good, just somehow…

“I guess with this kind of stage I’m in, happy with confidence. I’m going in the right direction of how I am approaching and progressing, but with this kind of very narrow window car, I just want to have as much consistency as possible.

“I guess Max kind of reporting the same in Q2, but at least he knows this car, and how to handle it. Even if it’s a bit of a surprise between runs he can probably adapt. With myself the difference I felt, especially between the first and second run, I’m not at the level that I can adjust fully in the lap or maximise the package.

“Not even the level I was doing in VCARB. Every time in qualifying. It’s getting frustrated.

Asked if the RB21 has the narrowest operational window of any car he has raced in F1, he added: “Yep, definitely. I would say difficult car but at the same time it’s not like undriveable but at same time, it’s a small window.”