First race of the 2025 season and Yuki Tsunoda left the F1 Australian GP with a mix of pride and frustration.
The RB driver delivered a fantastic performance for the team in qualifying. But he ultimately fell victim to the weather in Melbourne and a major gamble on strategy.
Powerful pace shown in qualifying
Tsunoda had a stellar qualifying performance, securing P5 on the grid with a lap time of 1:15.670 in Q3.
This put him just 0.574 seconds behind polesitter Lando Norris and, crucially, ahead of both Ferraris and one of the Mercedes’.
“The positive thing is we got good pace that was probably a bit unexpected,” Tsunoda said.
“We have to definitely revise what was the reason why we were able to perform well.”
What happened on race day at the Australian GP
Early in the race, Tsunoda held his own in the midfield and even passed Charles Leclerc to run as high as P5 by Lap 43.
However, as the rain began to fall and the track conditions became difficult, the team needed to make some strategy calls.
The Japanese driver revealed that the team’s indecision on tyre strategy was influenced by painful memories of a similar situation in Brazil the previous year.
“We had very painful memories from Brazil last year that we didn’t stay out,” Tsunoda explained.
“So definitely maybe that was kicking in, creating a bit of a difficult decision for us.”
Last year, RB had their strongest qualifying of the season, with Tsunoda achieving a career-best 3rd place.
However, after pitting too early for wet tyres, a red flag was called shortly after he had returned to track.
This caused Tsunoda to lose out on a ‘free’ tyre change during the stoppage. He would have been P2 if the Japanese driver stayed out.
In Australia however, ultimately, the call to pit came too late.
Tsunoda had already lost time struggling on slicks in the wet.
When he finally boxed, he rejoined the track outside the points.
“It was quite a clear situation that we should box,” he said.
“It was hard for myself as well to monitor every single corner… every lap keeps changing.
“The lap before the sector one was not raining but in the lap after it completely rained and I was reacting too late.”
“I don’t think I made a mistake to be honest in terms of communications and everything. I’m pretty happy with it, just didn’t go the way we wanted.”
What could have been for Tsunoda – again!
Tsunoda, again, has faced a major missed opportunity due to a poor strategy call.
“Until then, we were fighting very, very strongly, and we almost scored massive points for this weekend,” he said. “So yeah, very disappointed.”
He did note that the team “definitely accepted what mistake they’ve done.”
Adding salt to the wound was Williams’ Alex Albon securing an impressive P5 finish, capitalising on the chaos that RB couldn’t navigate.
“Now Williams scored a P5, which is very frustrating,” Tsunoda said.
“We just have to consistently perform like I did in qualifying this weekend.”
Praise from the Red Bull team
Despite Tsunoda’s disappointment at the F1 Australian GP, his performance didn’t go unnoticed.
Helmut Marko praised him for an “impeccable” weekend, highlighting his ability to keep a cool head, something he may not have done in previous seasons.
“His performance was good, no mistakes. It was a great weekend,” Marko said.
“Unfortunately, there was a mishap in the box, which cost him his well-defended spot in P6.”
Christian Horner also praised Tsunoda, noting that he “drove a very good race” and was impressed by his composure considering the changing weather conditions.
Looking ahead to the Chinese GP
With China just around the corner, the first Sprint race of the season, Tsunoda is looking forward to what the team can achieve.
“If we’re able to perform as well as we did in qualifying, I think a Sprint Race will be a good opportunity,” he said.
“But in hindsight, it can go the opposite way, so preparation is very important.”
