Tsunoda didn’t expect “very inconsistent” maiden F1 season

Yuki Tsunoda has admitted that his maiden season in Formula 1 for AlphaTauri hasn’t necessarily played out how he thought it would.

Connor McDonagh

25 Aug 2021

Yuki Tsunoda (JPN) AlphaTauri on the grid.
© xpbimages.com

Tsunoda has endured an inconsistent, error-prone start to life in F1 with just 18 points to his name in the opening 11 races.

The Japanese rookie has yet to out-qualify teammate Pierre Gasly, who sits eighth in the championship on 50 points.

While Tsunoda has struggled at times, he’s shown flashes of brilliance, such as his first race in Bahrain, overtaking Fernando Alonso on his way to finish ninth.

Reflecting on the season so far, he said ahead of this weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix: “The first half of the season overall was really interesting and enjoyable, many things about it were unexpected for me. It did not really match with what I had thought it might be like before the season started. There were lots of ups and downs and at times my performance was very inconsistent.

“But overall, I am quite happy because I managed to score points, helping Scuderia AlphaTauri to be the only team to score points in every race so far this year. We need to keep that going now as we start the second half of the year!

“After Hungary, I headed straight for the simulator in Milton Keynes to do the correlation for Hungaroring and also look at the next three tracks. Then I went to Italy and spent time sorting out my new home, which is very near to the factory in Faenza. I was definitely ready for a break and I enjoyed it.”

Having won the Formula 2 feature race at Spa last year, Tsunoda is excited to race at the iconic Belgian circuit this weekend.

“It’s great that we start racing again at Spa, because I have very good memories from this track,” Tsunoda added. “Last year in Formula 2, I won the Feature Race starting from pole position and the year before that in Formula 3, it was here that I got my first podium in the category.

“I like the track, so I am looking forward to it and I think it will be one of the circuits that will feel extra special in a Formula 1 car for the first time, it will be an especially interesting experience to see how an F1 car goes through Eau Rouge.”