By Killian Cronin
Photo: Red Bull Content Pool
It’s fair to say that the AlphaTauri AT03 wasn’t the most competitive car on the grid last year. The team was aware of this however and this means that different expectations can be on the drivers in such a situation. This year though – they expect things to be different. And that means it’s a very important year for Yuki Tsunoda; no longer an F1 rookie, with very different expectations.
Speaking after the launch of their 2023 challenger, Team Principal Franz Tost was asked about precisely this and would pull no punches in his reply:
“Last year, Yuki struggled with the car. This year, as I expect we will have quite a competitive car, Yuki must always aim to be in Qualifying 3 and finish the races in the points. He is a very highly- skilled driver and now has a lot of experience with two seasons in Formula 1. For this reason, of course, he has to score many more points than he did last year.”
Strong words indeed. In the 2022 season Tsunoda failed to score points on 17 occasions, netting a total points haul for the year of 12 compared to more experienced teammate Gasly’s 23. With Gasly having departed for Alpine,
Tsunoda is now the most experienced driver with the most knowledge of both the team and F1 itself, despite being 6 years younger than new arrival Nyck De Vries. It will now fall to the Japanese driver to be leading the team’s fight in the championship and with 2 seasons under his belt, all eyes will be on him to deliver.
The 22-year-old believes that while last year was indeed difficult for the team, he did improve on a personal level, citing his physical development and rebuilding his confidence toward the latter part of the 2021 season being “the key” to his improvement as a driver. When asked how he feels about his improvement since the 2021 season, gave the following reply:
“I’m at a completely different level now, although I have still kept the good aspects of my first year. But now, I am definitely more in control, more involved with the team when it comes to the development of the car and I also act differently, having learned lots of things, not just when it comes to racing but also in my life away from the track. Even that has a positive effect in how I race. I had underestimated what was involved, but now I’ve figured out the things that are really important.”
You have to admire his candor in admitting he underestimated what would be involved to operate at a top level in Formula 1 and can’t see many of his counterparts admitting the same.
Questioned about his personal goals for the season, he said:
“My main goal is to perform more consistently in every race, independently from the car’s performance, and to score points more reliably. I want to be more in control of myself at all times, work well with the team, understand the car as quickly as possible, right from the first race in Bahrain. I want this year to be my best performance of the three years in terms of getting to Q3 and scoring points.”
The first and last parts of that statement are crucial, as they line up almost exactly with Tost’s expectations on him for the season. You can be sure that the team boss has already delivered what reads very much like a warning to Tsunoda in private long before these statements have come to light and it may be a tense year for the young Japanese driver as he seeks to continue in Formula 1 beyond the 2023 season – particularly with the ever present shadow of Red Bull’s history of being more than happy to replace a driver at short notice if they feel they aren’t delivering.
Tsunoda is an entertaining character and a talented driver to boot, being well liked inside and out of the paddock, so let’s hope the AT04 can prove a machine he can get the most out of and score those “many more” points Mr. Tost desires.
Photo: AlphaTauri
